Happenstance
by Miko Kanna
Summary: (Digimon Adventure, pre-01 AU) "I didn't let go like I should have… and I ended up here… in Koromon's world." What is a toddler to do in this big, bad world? Coincidence was a funny thing; it could alter destinies... even ones that were only just beginning to be born.
1. Prologue: Into the Void

_**A/N:**_Hello. The early bird gets the worm I suppose. Welcome. This took a little while but the first in the _**Bound by the Record**_ portion of this collection, Happenstance is ready and raring to go. This will be rated T for death, violence, and rare but occasional otherworld cursing.

Things of note: Hikari is four and Taichi is eight as of this prologue. I've tried to makes sure they act like the children they are. This is based on the movie short they were in. Or this part is anyway. After that is strictly AU territory. In the Japanese dub, they only knew him as Koromon while the dub refers to him as Greymon at one point.

Welcome to _Happenstance_ everybody. Enjoy the ride~

* * *

_**Prologue: Into the Void**_

Noisy.

That was what it was.

No, _what _wasn't the word. The word was _how._ Yes, that was right. That was _how _it was. She had to get the words just right. It was hard right now. It was hard to even think. Her hands were clenched in her big brother's fists and Hikari was afraid. She didn't know anything could be so scary at the age of four. Four was the age when things were dreams. This wasn't a dream anymore. There was something wrong.

Koromon wasn't getting up.

Koromon, who was so strong that he had broken her bed, was now very still and fallen to the ground. It was the bird that was making the noise. It was screaming, a shrill noise like her whistle at its loudest. Her ears ached like she was crying. She tried not to cry. The screaming... was it angry? Maybe it was pain. A part of her, the part that was able to know when things were right or wrong, that could accept Koromon, told her the answer. It was happiness, a wrongly happy cry that did make the tears rise to her eyes.

How?

How come?

Koromon was hurt. His eyes were squeezed shut and he was _not moving. _This was bad; this was very, very bad. What was happy about it? What was good about it? He wasn't dead; he couldn't be. She had to believe , she began to tug at the yellow scales near her tiny hands. "Koromon... wake up. You gotta... we've gotta go home. Please... Koromon." Her vision wavered suddenly, fear closing her throat and making her cough. "Koromon..."

Why was the bird happy?

_Because he's won. And he knows._

Yeah. It had beaten Koromon. Koromon had protected them, like Onii-chan always protected her. He looked up at her Onii-chan's face, at his eyes, to see if they would be okay. He was pale, sweaty. Her mind searched for the right word to say to him, to call his attention and see what she should do at this moment. The words never came and she turned toward a crackling sound, her vision filling with a white-blue light.

Hikari didn't need to be a big girl to know what to do at that moment.

She curled under Agumon's fallen body and reached out to beat her tiny fists on his white belly. Tears began to dribble down her face. "Wake... up! You're going to get hurt, Koromon! Wake... up!" Her brother's hands were distant claws to her as she watched, hoping, desperately hoping. Yet the little dinosaur, who had grown from something so small and cute, remained motionless under the rubble of the bridge. Could he even hear her? Had he really listened since he became that yellow monster? He had almost blown up that bus, no matter how much she had said no.

Was he even their Koromon anymore?

But... he had to be. He was still keeping her safe, still caring for her. He was probably scared, just like she was. "Koromon... please get up. I'm not mad; I promise. Don't stay asleep. Please don't..."

"Come on Hikari!" Her brother's hands wrapped around her hood. "This is dangerous! We gotta go!"

"But Koromon," she whimpered, trying to pull away.

Her brother's grip was harder than it meant to be, almost ripping her shirt. "Koromon will be fine. He can do this! Come _on!_"

"O_nii_-chan!" She started crying again and hated it, coughing beginning to wheeze from her mouth. Her chest rattled and gasped, knees shaking. Black spots dotted her eyes and she gasped. "I... onii-chan... I... can't... br-look out!" The night sky turned blue out of the corner of her eye and a strange zapping noise filled the air. The parrot cawed with delight as something beautiful and really scary _shivered_ through the air. Taichi tried to hide her as they both went flying into a pile of the rubble.

Hikarigaoka glowed... and she trembled.

She could only watch... only watch and cough as the attack struck Koromon. The scales slowly turned ashy gray, stray little shocks jumping about. Her brother's grip on her shoulder abruptly tightened, staring over her head at what she couldn't see. The bird began to caw once more, full of triumph, and she cringed. A part of her just wanted to hide in her Onii-chan's arms for the rest of the time. But... no, she couldn't do that. She had to... try... again. If she kept calling out, maybe once, just once, he would hear her voice. "Koro...mon...?" Her brother's arms were very still. It was almost like he wasn't breathing. Then a wave of panic rushed up her spine.

_helpmepleaseI'mscaredOnii-chan'sscaredhelpUS!_

_Don't worry. I'll definitely protect you._

A green eye looked at her and she hiccuped. "Koromon...?" There was a feeling, a rushing in her head like the voice. Then the green eye shifted ruby red and the rubble shook, the whistle on her neck with it. Underneath the rubble, Koromon was shaking, shifting, growing into some dark... thing. She didn't understand what was happening, but... that could be blamed on being young... not having the words to explain what her heart knew so well already.

Things were changing.

The thing moved again and concrete fell around them, knocking her back into her brother's lap with a whump. Now an orange dinosaur rose from the dust cloud, ruby eyes aglow. For a moment, the eyes stared at the children from below. Her brother tugged futilely at her pajama pants and there she remained. Hikari knew better than to move now. Then Koromon, who was even _bigger _now she realized, rose to his full height and _roared._ Voices screamed and the parrot faced his new opponent with a leer on its face. It wasn't afraid, like when her Onii-chan was on the soccer field.

"Onii-chan... do you think Koromon will be okay?

Her brother looked down at her, at the terrified look on her face. The reassuring words didn't come and he admitted. "I don't know, but he survived Meeko and the cat food war. Maybe, he'll be okay now."

"Then who will keep us safe?"

Taichi startled and inwardly winced. He wished his sister wasn't so gosh darn smart already. A slow, fake smile rose on his face and he patted her short brown hair. "Even if he can't, I will protect you." _Always._

This did not reassure her, and it showed. "Then who will protect you and Koromon."

"Aw...you," He grinned. "I'll be okay. And I guess Koromon will-look out!" He threw himself and her to lie flat on the ground and Koromon charged, tackling the giant bird. They crashed into each other, claws and talons cutting into skin and large red droplets hitting the ground. There was a loud caw as the parrot's beak sank into the flesh of Koromon's arm. Her brother screamed in fear and Hikari looked to see more red, more red falling like scary rose petals.

Why was this happening? Why did they have to fight?

_I don't want it to eat you._

There was a sudden, nauseous screech and Koromon was thrown backwards, crashing into what was left of the bridge. He flopped onto his belly, once more completely still.

Hikari wailed her new friend's name, the noise quickly falling into a heaving sob. She lunged out of her brother's grip and he couldn't even stop her for a moment. Then his hands caught her hood and she positively howled, her hood falling from her head and smacking him on the nose. She hit the sidewalk with a squeal. "Stop!" This time, she did listen, making his heart slow down about three beats.

She reached down and wrapped her fingers around the small, white whistle at her neck. Her safety net, her _security blanket_, the thing that never failed to get her Onii-chan's attention, to wake him up. Up until now, she had forgotten it... could it work on Koromon? It hadn't before... but, she had to try. Otherwise... she shuddered. They would get eaten... or something. Hikari tried to suck in air to whistle, but her lungs refused her. She tried again and only managed to spit, feeling her stomach heave like the angry ocean.

That was when her Onii-chan caught on. He took a deep breath and blew into her whistle. The loud screech of a sound hung in the air like a bad dream, making the air still and broken. Nothing could move.

Then Koromon's eyes snapped open and with one great howling cry, he blasted white fire at his opponent. It was blinding, blinding enough that she managed to lift her arms and hide her eyes.

Once more, she heard the voice, kind, sad.

_I had fun today. Bye bye..._

_No..._she thought blindly, opening her eyes. _No... Me too... I want to go too..._

_You can't... it's not your place... it's not... what... what's happening?_

She opened her eyes, wondering. Through the light she could see something. The ground was a lot further away than it had been a moment ago. Was she flying? "Onii-chan..." she called. "Onii-chan!"

She thought she heard him scream and wanted to look again. Yet, in only a second, she found there was nothing to look at. There was just darkness, nothing. Once she knew that, she was able to fall down.

Down she went.


	2. Chapter 1: What is Fate?

_**A/N:**_Here we are. Took me long enough.

Thank you for your support. Reviews will be addressed separately.

Favs: Dunk324,Skittymon, anaiza18, endlessfun

Follows: Allycat826,Dunk324,Skittymon,Topazel Hannah, anaiza18, chelsea p. evans, crestoflight3, endless fun

Thank all of you for support. Here is chapter 1. A review is a beautiful treasure. I would be very grateful for one. Thank you and enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 1: What is Fate?**_

This realm was full of whispers.

The little girl noticed this as she fell.

She wasn't sure how they could be whispering. Her ears were ringing with loud, loud silence. So they couldn't be whispering. It was more like the voices were... colors. Yes, that was it. The voices were colors of the rainbow, pulsing and flashing in the dark like a... that light her Papa had once told her to never touch. It was hard for even her to understand, and the colors weren't making it any easier.

"_**What have we done?"**_ One asked, pale blue and burning. Its colors seemed dim, as though it were taking all of its energy to speak those words. In the loud silence, the color persisted, clearly upset. "_**What have we **_done_**?"**_

"_**We?"**_ hissed another, a dark, dark orange and almost moving. "_**There is only a 'we' in our objectives. We are not**_ friends_**, dragon."**_

"_**Of all the things to be pedantic over when a life is at stake."**_

"_**Lives are at stake every day, and all of them worth more than this one. Let it be wiped."**_

_Wiped?_ The word echoed in her voice, the color a faint pink. The darkness burst at the word, briefly flashing a rainbow. In it, she thought she could see shapes, animal shapes run through with odd lines of green and blue. They flashed painfully and she shut her eyes, not wanting to see any further. Then, they were gone and she was back in the cool, blessed dark again. Around her, the colorful conversation rushed on, about her, about life or being wiped. It was such strange conversation. Who were these colors, these voices, and why were they allowed to talk about such things? Were they like bosses, who decided if Mama worked, or Papa didn't?

"_**By stasis, it's**_ aware_**,"**_ muttered the dark orange, sounding amused. "_**Why have they decided to trust in these things?"**_

"_**One does not need to be a god to be more than ordinary,"**_ cautioned a third color, forest-green and, to Hikari, harder to see. Was it an old color, a used-up crayon? "_**Not everything that is weaker is more foolish, young one. Remember your roots." **_The dark orange flickered like a sputtering candle, silenced.

"_**You have been quiet, strong one,"**_ the first color said. "_**Have you any thoughts to share?"**_

The final color was a color so dark purple she was surprised she could hear it at all. She thought the silence would continue to swallow it, as it had done for most of the time. "_**I have... garnered a few, perhaps... I would like to make use of this... diversion. Now would be best."**_ The color was swirling, thinking to itself, it seemed like.

Her own pink light grew a little, trying to speak, to find her own words. _Use me?_ Then she flinched, feeling the pointed stares of eyes on her. There were many, many red eyes focused on her body and they were frightening. Her limbs protested movement and it wasn't fair. She didn't want to feel them looking at her were different. They weren't Koromon's eyes. Koromon had had scary eyes for a while too...but they had known her. They saw her. Did these? They didn't feel like it. _You want... to use me?_

"_**Yes, little human,"**_ said the voice. "_**Before Fate takes the chance away from me."**_ The colors, as if by a command, were growing brighter, as though the voices were growing louder. "_**You are... potential, young human. I would like to shape it properly."**_

"_**Into bloodlust and death, you mean**_." The orange was unhappy with this, it seemed. What would it lose? She didn't see. "_**It seems a useless endeavor."**_

"_**Then kindly be quiet and allow me to do it. You do enjoy pride being crushed."**_

"_**Are you certain this is right?"**_ the blue asked.

"_**It will save a life,**_" the violet said. "_**Abandon that soft hesitation of yours a moment. You rely on a just answer too much, dragon, just as our wise one on experience and our flame on compassion."**_

"_**Are you saying trust in your logic?"**_

"_**I am asking to trust in**_ sense. _**Now, help me and it will go a great deal smoother. Hurry, before they realize we've tinkered with a new toy."**_ There were odd pulses and the colors turned into a blinding rainbow. She saw black lines creeping across her hands. "_**Stay now child, and don't panic. This will hurt."**_

It did hurt. Adults were never wrong about when things would really hurt. But it didn't hurt quite so badly until a strange voice started to wail and her forehead began to burn.

_STOP IT! YOU'RE DOING SOMETHING TO HER, AND YOU'D BETTER STOP IT RIGHT NOW!_

The wailing grew, louder and louder and a brighter, lighter red.

"_**Don't be daft, you silly dead creature,"**_ sneered the violet light. "_**Off with you."**_

Then the colors were silent too and she didn't think for a long, long time.

…

They all saw the light brighten their world.

It was hard _not _to see it. The sun was not meant to rise for hours yet. So when the purple sky of the forest was lit up a blinding white, it was a problem. The citizens stirred into action almost immediately to it. They had enough problems at the moment. One more, a light that was slipping through the branches of the trees and reaching to the ocean beyond, was not something to enjoy.

The creatures crept out to see it floating above their clearing, a softly throbbing white egg of light. The light was warm like the sun, turning the sky shades of blue and orange and pink. The urge to attack, which had been powerful only minutes earlier, abated abruptly. They could only stare in bleary fascination, and wonder.

"What is it?"

The voice was met with a huff and a ruffle of feathers. "Something calamitous, I'm sure," the bird grumbled. "These flashy things tend to be. That last one was such a-"

"Hush!" whispered the first, clacking claws against tree bark. "The little ones..."

"Don't be daft," the bird sneered. She did fall quiet, however, watching in solemn awe as the light seemed to dim, shrinking in on itself. It turned from something the size of one of the large trees to . Everyone's eyes remained on it, wondering, in their own way, if it would crack like one of their eggs.

"What in the name of the Wall of Fire is all of this now?"

Some of the creatures turned and a muted chatter rose among the crowd. The bird let out a chirrup of amusement as bare feet crunched on the forest floor. The ground creatures parted to show a child, an angel child with a smile on his face. "What a crowd has gathered," the blonde mused.

"Hello to you too, ol' boy," squawked the bird, peering at him through the goggles on her eyes. "That your doing there, Lucemon?" He pointed a wing at the glowing orb, causing the rising chatter to jolt to a halt.

The angel flapped its wings, scratching a beautifully pale cheek. "That would be a wonderful thing to pin on me, if it could be, my dear owl. It showed up here out of nowhere, did it not?"

The owl-Owlmon- let out a chirping snort. "Oh, aye. Doesn't that smell like you? All nice and quiet and calm, now it's too peaceful for any 'mon to think."

"Speak for yourself," drawled a voice over the crowd. Owlmon hooted his dislike as the creature continued to talk. "Oi, Prince." Lucemon turned with a raised eyebrow as a blue dog padded it way out to them. "Go on up there and take a look, would ya? Maybe it'll fix th' thing you call yer brain."

Lucemon raised an eyebrow. "Am I just your guinea pig?"

"Yep," said the creature with a smirk. "Better you 'an us." Nervous laughter rippled through the crowd. "Not like any o' us can be called super mighty angel Digimon."

Lucemon chuckled. "To the weak go the spoils of selfish people then." He did see the pragmatic reason for him to go. He was the only one who could actually safely fight back against unknown threats with little harm to his person. Their reasoning was just so... boring though. Tutting, the angel shook his head and pushed off from the ground, going to see this mysterious wonder. Clearly, no one really paid attention during an evolution, _really._ At his inquisitive stare, it shrank further, about the size of himself. It darkened from white to pink, shimmering around the edges of his fingers. There was a soft thrum there and he paused.

"Well, hello there," he mumbled. "You're trying to talk to me, aren't you?" It thrummed again, light washing over his skin. "Oh, now that doesn't work," Lucemon said. "You have to come out _here_ to talk to me. It's only polite, after all."

Owlmon tittered. "He's _talking_ to it, Gaomon. Are we sure we should have sent the _Madman Prince_ up to solve this problem?" The dog, Gaomon, snorted.

"I assure you this is perfectly feasible," Lucemon said with a pleasant smile. "You all should have thought of it first." He placed his hand on the sphere, intending to push in and see if it could a bright thing it was..."All of you shouldn't really be standing around here, gaping like fools. It could always blow up while I'm chatting here, you never know." He gave a balmy grin at them all. "I would be fine of course." At the expressions of horror, he shook his head. "Really, now, it won't. It's just a flimsy shield on here, really. Light is only brightness without heat, just as life is only existence with a purpose or a goal is a goal without a will."

Gaomon pulled himself onto his hind legs. "Yer doin' this on purpose, ya old coot! Get on wit' it... whatever it is."

Lucemon chuckled and pushed at the sphere again. "Go chase a stick." His fingers harmlessly passed through the light and it instantly changed, clamping down on his arm and squeezing it. "Well, well!" he said, smiling, reaching in with his other arm. It clamped down again and he actually winced. "Well, what do we have here?" The tendrils of light squirmed and he sighed. "Oh dear, enough of that. I won't eat you, little human." The Digimon below all shifted and he sighed. "Civilians. They act like it's a data malformation or other such nonsense. I won't hurt you."

Something, an oddly red something, stung at his skin. It clearly disagreed. "You aren't the human," he said with a sigh. "Who are you?" It snarled and lunged around him, causing Lucemon to shake his head. "A dying thing, then. You can't protect her anymore."

_I can! I can protect both of them!_ The voice snarled, roaring through his head before grumbling something inaudible. Quite a sulky child they had here. _She is my friend!_

"Some good you are doing." Lucemon mused smoothly. Blood began to drip from his limb and his expression turned to a cold frown. "Enough! I am trying to help the human and your resistance does nothing of the sort!" His hands grasped fabric over flesh and he tugged, pulling her free from its grasp. "My," he said gently, looking at the unconscious, chubby face. "You're a tiny thing aren't you? The light shrank from her, becoming just a wisp over her head. It left his arms a little singed, but no matter. The girl breathed still, and that was a great thing for his curiosity.

_Give her to me._

"I will not, not when you're disappearing like that, whoever you are. You can't stay with her forever, you little fool. You don't even have a body to shield her with." Quite an odd looking girl, in any case. Didn't girl humans have more hair?

_She was sent here through me. She's like this because I found 's my fault... It is..._

Lucemon sighed, an audible noise to the whole area. Everyone in it twitched. No one liked when the crazy prince of their continent did that. "Then _disappear_ before you make it worse. Then you can come back and make things right. Honestly, you can end the silly drama."

The voice went very, very quiet. Then the light disappeared, winking out of existence and spiraling to a spot on the left side of the human's forehead. He brushed what little hair was there to see...

And promptly almost dropped the human.

Then, he laughed. This was an interesting development, was it not? He brushed at the back of his neck, almost by reflex.

Lucemon dropped to the ground, and walked away, eerily silent barring the small chuckles of dark fear leaving his lips. The other Digimon stared after her, but he paid them no heed. Rarely did, as it was. The girl whimpered in her sleep, and he hummed in reply.

"Looks like I have to dig out that old box now," the angel said to himself as he disappeared into the trees. "Wonder which shelf I left it on..." He chuckled again, the sounds still of fear. He would definitely have to find it, for the sake of this child, for the sake of his own inquisitive needs. The child was not ordinary; that was for certain.

After all, what would an ordinary human child be doing with a _nexus mark _on their forehead?

…

Hikari rubbed her eyes as she awoke. It took her a few moments to realize that she had been able to do this. Then she looked up at the ceiling above her. She was no longer falling. her head was peaceful. The colors were nowhere to be found, which was very nice indeed. There had been too many voices in those colors, all of them strange and far away, all but one.

Koromon.

But... Koromon was gone now.

Somehow, she could no longer feel him, no longer feel anything from her friend. It was like when he had broken her bed last night. She had felt nothing then too. Now, though, this nothing felt like it would stretch on forever. Her eyes stung at the possibility and she shook her head. No. No tears. She had cried, and Koromon had gotten hurt and Onii-chan had gotten scared. So no. No crying now. She had to find Onii-chan... or something.

As she tried to sit up, she thought the air smelled like leaves, leaves she didn't know. Hikari rather liked the smell; it took the tears away.

She did not think to wonder where she herself was. That wasn't all that important. It was someplace new, she knew that, and she was in a comfy bed, which was very important somehow. That felt like quite enough for her to be getting on with at the moment. With a low, painful groan, she forced herself to roll over on one side, arms protesting. Doing this found herself dangerously close to the face of a young boy.

For the most part, the boy seemed unperturbed. Blonde hair framed wide, light blue eyes as they blinked into her own. "Oh, hello," said the boy, examining her without a change in his face. He was very close. It was odd. It almost made her cross-eyed. "Do all humans sleep for so long? Or is it because you are small? Small humans and small Digimon seem to always be in comas. Very strange. I don't even remember doing it myself."

For a few minutes, the boy babbled on. He certainly seemed strange himself. Even Hikari, in her sleep-befuddled state, could tell this. "What... are you?" A flash of insight struck her. "Are you... like Koromon?"

The boy perked from his one-sided talking, and tilted his head. He smiled, oddly quiet for a he giggled. "Well, pretty girl, while I am rather pleased as punch that you even know what a Koromon is, I am _appalled_ by the idea of evolving from something like that. I am an _angel_, pretty girl, not someone's plush toy."

Hikari blinked. "Ohh...kay."

He smirked. "Never mind that now. Would you like to take a walk? You've been sleeping a long time, and here in the Digital World, that's a dangerous thing."

"Digital World?" The syllables felt funny. "Is... Is Onii-chan..." If he was here, wherever here could be, then it would be okay. She wouldn't have to be quite so scared. "Is he here?"

The boy's smile vanished. White wings unfurled before her very eyes, each feather glowing a faint gold. "I'm sorry, lass, but you were the only little human to enter our world these past few days. There have been others, but they were days and days ago. You would have fallen together I would say." He sighed. "Judging by the way I found you, you were an unintentional gift yourself."

Her rose eyes glimmered with confusion, words swirling over her head. "So... Mr. Angel, can I go back?" At the puzzled raise of an eyebrow, she explained. "If I am over here, and he is over there, then he will be worried about me. I can't make him worry about me anymore than I already do."

The angel gave her a sympathetic sigh, mussing her hair with a tattooed hand. "You are a good girl, yet a misguided girl. If I could return you, I would. But I was not the one who called you, or the one who touched your soul, I'm afraid it's not within my power to do so. All I would suggest... is finding out why you were called here. Creatures are taken from their world for a purpose, always. If you fulfill that, perhaps it will set you free. I'm not certain, pretty girl. I'm very sorry."

…

Lucemon closed the door softly behind him. Then he shook his head, heading away towards his library. "Poor, poor thing." The chrome tiling was chilly on his bare feet, but it was easy to ignore. Terribly so. Around him passed other Digimon, each small creature focused on their tasks. Dutiful little things they were. Off to the side, a stern, fox face nodded at him, going to walk by his side.

"Prince." The fox looked down at him. "How was it?"

"She," the angel replied with a snort. "She's a girl. And physically she's well, incredibly well. Almost abnormal. Emotionally, I'm uncertain. She's quite young for whatever her purpose entails."

"You're so certain that she has one." The Renamon gave a passing servant a nod of the head."Perhaps she was an accident and she will be erased." Her unsmiling blue eyes gave him a pointed look, asking for pragmaticism.

He tutted at her, a dark note in the chipper sound. "Then I wouldn't have _found _her Renamon. Honestly, do think. She would have been erased by now. Also, that little dear on her head there... wouldn't have been there. Those silly Holy Ones always cause such a stir..." He laughed. "It's almost like the old days..."

Renamon gave him a woeful snort, snapping him out of the possible reverie. "The Holy Ones, that's a title that encourages chaos, doesn't it my Prince?"

"It's a mark of my age," Lucemon said with a wave of the hand. "I will protect this one," he added. "For she is young and full of light and the night is dark and full of terrors. And anyway, she is of an age where she could have the world... or the world could have her.

He _loved_ possibilities.

…

Hikari let out a small yelp of pain, pulling her hand from the cup of water on the tiny table. Her hand wavered, literally wavered, before her eyes, phasing from a soft, fleshy thing to something black and white and kind of like a video game. Then it returned to normal and she sighed in relief. She had just wanted some water... was something wrong with her?

_Yes, I'm afraid there is._

Hikari looked around the spacious room. _Are you another voice? _She thought. She was kind of getting tired of them. "Who are you," she said, directing the question at the kind of ugly emerald curtains. Maybe this was an actual imaginary friend. Wait... she couldn't see this one either. "Are you like the angel-man?" Her chest hurt at the question, as though it were a wrong one.

_No, but I was looking for you. I'm a friend, you see. I am bad at friends, but I was asked to come here by... someone. Here and other places... oh...sorry, this is confusing._ Hikari nodded and waited. Imaginary friends, for she had decided that was what this was, could be bad at making friends too sometimes. _You're special,_ the voice said after a moment. _You see, you aren't supposed to be here, but you are here. The world, it doesn't like that at all, you see._

"Um... what does that have to do with the water?" she asked.

There was a shy laugh. _Sorry, sorry. When your hand did that, it was the world trying to get you out of here._

"I'm still here, though."

_Yeah. Someone's protecting you. I think it's the one who brought you here. I don't know. I don't think they can do it for much longer, though. So you need to figure out how to protect yourself._

"Um... "

_It's okay, _the little voice assured. _You're strong; it'll work. You just have to find the way._

"I don't get it..."

_It's okay._ A hand, or the feeling of a hand, rested on her shoulder. Her rose eyes widened as an image of mauve hair and dark, old eyes filled her vision. Then it vanished and she stared. _Someday, you'll be able to always see me, and always understand. I know it; I can feel it. For now, please be careful. I need to go find who did this to you._

"Why?"

_Once a friend protected me. I want to protect someone too. Good luck._


	3. Chapter 2: Towards the Streetsign

**_A/N:_ **Hello. Weekly update time.

Thank you to new favorites from The Keeper of Worlds, NatNichole, Snake Gear, and MitzvahRose. thank you for new favorites from The Keeper of Worlds, Snake Gear, and Akira Kamiya.

I've gotten a fair few reviews saying this story is a bit complex. Good. I'm glad that's been caught. This one will make it only a trifle more confusion, but the next chapter will ease that. This is the chapter that gathers almost everything up. Enjoy. Please review as well. I love reading them.

* * *

_**Chapter 2: Toward the Streetsign**_

Work. Endless, monotonous thing. It was almost like having a desk job.

_Hurry..._

_The selection's..._

_It's soon..._

_Finish the process..._

"I'm going," he murmured, forcing himself to rise again. It was a painful action, cracking his bones and returning his headache to full force like a clanging bell. The man grunted as he walked, a pulse of echaustion racing up his arms. "Such a troublesome thing."

"Someone's a wee busy, I see?"

The man tugged at the folds of his robe, shaking his head to clear it. Then he smiled toward the entryway of his home. "Never too busy for you, old friend. How is the outside world?" It was a humiliating inquiry for someone like him, who should know a world with a glance. However, the man accepted the price of his position, or perhaps it wasn't in his programming to do otherwise. Even after all this time of watching over what he was meant to watch over, the exact reason of his origin escaped him.

No matter. He had been alive too long in which to care.

Gaomon shook himself and sat on the tatami mat. "Well, lessee... on my way back I saw dat experiment of the people movin' around. Seems like sommat finally told 'im where to go. Don't think I've ever seen Digimon of Folder looking quite so bothered." Gennai snorted." I know, righ'? Was der choice." His amber eyes glittered with mischief. "Mayhaps it shoulda been you making da decisions, overseer."

The man shook his head. "I like humans about as much as most Digimon do. Bad blood, bad reputations, that incident back in the days of Malea... not a good time." He shrugged. "Besides, I have all the right to meddle in such affairs as an egg." The man scratched at his brown hair, pulling at a scroll on his table. "How are other things? While that in itself is a relief, I don't know you to come all this way merely to report that."

Gaomon raised boxing glove-covered front paws in defense, smirking with embarrassment. "Ya got me." He adjusted his bandanna before it could droop over his eyes. "Bit of an interestin' ordeal the other night over on Circuit."

"My, that's far." Gennai raised an eyebrow. "Did you have to swim all the way over?"

"Lemme get the words out!" the other barked, eyes looking abruptly hostile, glowing yellow instead of a slightly bright brown. "Before I ferget 'im. I'm a mutt, not a man!" Gennai held back a chuckle and waited. Hot tempered little animal he was, did so _hate_ anyone commenting. Terror to wind up, terror of a sulker too. "_Anyway," _the Digimon finally continued. "Interestin' ordeal in Circuit, righ'? Middle o' the nigh' sommat blew up the sky. Twas like a star, y'see?"

The man frowned. "You saw this?" This was sounding like a talel for the babies on File Island who couldn't spit acid yet.

"Wouldn't drop it in yer ears if I hadn't," said the dog with a sigh. "Tha's not even th' best part."

Gossip-monger. "Oh, _do _tell."

"Y'know about the Sephirot Prince, doncha?"

Gennai frowned, recalling snippets of snippets of rumors. "Eccentric angel, odd Child with more enemies than a Wisemon, created a whole kingdom during Malean War?"

"Dat's the one."

"Only rumors."

Gaomon chortled. "Everyone knows 'im fer rumors. Ruddy shame, guy's a bloody brilliant fella. More than a trifle of his processes wonky though, I'll admit that first."

A chuckle. "Have to be a little crazy to revive that dead old block of earth during those silly times. So, how was he connected?"

"He weren't." At Gennai's raised eyebrow, he clarified. "Not at the start, I mean. He's gotta be now. Pulled a human from dat light and looked mighty fine about it too."

"A _human_?" Something in the frank saying of the word made the whispers hush. They had been buzzing the whole time but Gennai had learned quickly to tune them out. For them to go silent... it made his hair stand up. "Have the worlds reconnected so soon?" He looked at Gaomon, hoping for an answer, and Gaomon simply stared back.

"Doubtin' it. Those were the good times. We ain't havin' things like the "Echo" anytime soon." He coughed. "What's with the fear?"

"Why are you so pleased?" Something was out of order, it had to be.

Gaomon shrugged. "Thought it was dat master plan. Get a... oh what're they called... a mole in."

"Oh yes, a plan that relies on a power _we _can't even understand, let alone are capable of harnessing properly," the overseer said, sighing low. He placed his head in large, tan hands. "This is... it's a malfunction of some sort, caused by those others. It must be... It's too soon. The data is still _processing."_ He wasn't panicking, no, not yet, but there was some part of his data that wanted to.

"You know this how?"

"Humans haven't _randomly_ fallen from the sky since Echo. I've checked the records in the past few weeks. Believe me, those others were a forced entry, but no accident. Either that human was pulled from the forming _rift _in the barriers, there's some astral meddling, or..."

"Or..."

Gennai scowled. "Or both, which means there's no description to how bad this is."

"For you?"

"It certainly gives me more paperwork..." _And why aren't_ you _making a fuss about this_? He directed this thought at the still quiet voices of his intangible superiors that were usually incessantly talking to him. It bothered him. If they knew something, anything, that made him feel even more uncomfortable with the news. They should have told him. That they hadn't was a sign of... of _what_, exactly?

Then they answered him, like they'd been waiting for his outburst.

_Fate..._

_Changing fate..._

_She's here... _

_Hurry!_

_Now..._

_Please..._

Well, that was word was new. "Haven't heard Homeostasis say please before..."he muttered to himself. "Must be anxious. There's nothing I can do."

"Ey, ya mind coming back to Earth?" Gaomon growled, looking him up and down. "You sure you ain't the Madman Prince?" He had planted himself right in front of Gennai's nose. "Yer panicking, ya fart. Ain't supposed to be showin' all dat fear."

Blue and amber eyes stared each other down for a moment. Then Gennai sighed and looked away. Never challenge the will of a protective animal. "...You're right," he eventually said. "I am not meant to be afraid. However... this child... was dragged here... into this world. There's nothing I can do. I cannot save her from the wipe, from anything. That is... aggravating."

Gaomon snorted. "Crap. You just don't _want_ to."

There was no answer.

…

"Are you awake, pretty girl?"

Hikari, who had been struggling to toddle her tiny way out of the bed, looked up at the door. It was a large and glamorous bed, to be sure, what with a thick mattress and emerald sheets. "Y-Yes!" she called, recognizing the voice of that angel, that one named Lucemon. "I-I'm in here!"

"Course you are, pretty girl! You've only been with us living, waking ones for a day!" The voice through the door sounded really pleased with itself. "Couldn't go anywhere even if you'd wanted to. So, may I come in?"

"Uh... um, please do." Her voice quavered out and she let out a cry of pain as the doorknob turned. Lucemon opened the door to see her on the floor, clawing helplessly at the air. Her right hand sparkled red with blood.

Lucemon, despite the anxiety that filled his gaze, did not panic. "Oh dear, oh dear," he mused gently, floating over o her side. She made no more sounds. She _couldn't_, he quickly realized as her whole body phased like a broken television set. Her small body warped, twisting sideways, flickering black and grey. Her tiny mouth opened in a scream as her eyes looked at him full of fear. Lucemon reacted, grabbing her hands in his and squeezing until he felt skin.

"Oh no, you _don't_,"he hissed, calm in the face of this too-familiar moment. "This girl is not your next meal, silly planet. She has a purpose and you will not prevent her from accomplishing it, even if _hell_ desires her!" Lucemon paid no heed to Hikari's expression grimacing into an "O", mark on her forehead a stark, burning white. His hands began to glow, blue eyes shifting into an animalistic glare.

Even as the girl's eyes widened again, he didn't react, though the phasing began to tremble. The light closed around her body, twining like ivy. "Divine... Feat!" Lucemon whispered. He closed his eyes now and reached, reached for her, reached for that other thing, the one he was looking to speak to. She might hate him for this... but... it was likely the only way... he just had to try.

Hikari's voice began to crack, reaching his ears in a gasp. "... Mr. Angel... it hurts..."

"It will be all right, pretty girl," he said quietly. He didn't open his eyes to look at her. "You aren't going anywhere yet. You're too interesting to disappear." A chill stole over her and her ears heard the sound of something thrashing about, flowing in a rush of what could be... water? As it grew louder, Lucemon's voice fell softer. Fear mounted higher in her throat.

_Onii-chan, _she thought. _I'm scared. I don't know what's happening to me... help me..._

Her eyes, stuck at seeing the wavering pale green ceiling, saw a strange light, grey and black. The colors swirled and warped, creating a swirling thing that reminded her of whirlpools in anime. It pulsed and the words entered her brain. It was like the freaky colors all over again. Scary... She didn't want to fall anymore.

_You must move past that fear. He is not going to be able to do this is you do not._

_Are you like the colors who stared at me?_

_In the sense that I am their antithesis, yes._

_Their what?_

_...I forget the limitations of youth._

_Sorry._

_You're disappearing, child. You have no time for apologies._

She managed to blink slowly, closing her eyes to the light Lucemon was giving off now in waves. _Some weird person said this was because of the world._

_The child, yes that child of those so-called "colors". You are adjusting to the world and the world dislikes it. _The color swirled and gurgled like bath water. _You must force it to accept you. Strike back, or you will never return home._

_Never?_ Hikari trembled and the phasing abruptly settled. "But I have to go back... I have to go home. Onii-chan's probably really worried... even Mama... and Papa too... I have to go back to them..."

"_I can't disappear!"_

The voice pulsed. _That's a good girl._

…

_Who are you?_

Gennai let out a yelp as he was abruptly knocked into desert sand. Geez, throw him _right _into the middle of Server, thank you very much. The wind slammed into his robe and he spat out grit. Gaomon shook himself as he followed, chuckling at him. "Ya ain't gonna get to Circuit on yer stomach."

"Oh,shut up," Gennai muttered, standing up. "If Homeostasis weren't so pushy on the matter... Circuit's on the other side of the Ocean... how did you get across?"

"Hitched a ride," Gaomon replied, nudging him in the right direction. "We can't do that until we get even halfway there."

"What's so special about this one human that I'm being sent to retrieve them?" Gennai muttered, pulling his hood up. "The data still hasn't fully processed yet."

"Eh, the data'll get a virus before you're through." Gennai glared at him. "Okay, not funny, ya fart. But shut up and go. If 'dem bosses of yours say important, you better say: I got answers. Or at least that Lucemon will give you some."

"If only he had some sense and sent a messenger." Gennai sighed. "It's my duty to figure this out, isn't it?"

"Aye, and my duty to make sure you lived long enough to tell 'em."

Gennai chuckled. "Loyal friend you are. I owe you."

The dog blushed. "I's m' choice, mate."

"That's the best loyalty I could ask for."


	4. Chapter 3: In the Algorithm

_**A/N:** _It's done. At 1:30 in the morning, this chapter is finally typed up properly. In truth, I missed a page in the last chapter but it was smoother just to add it to this one.

crestoflight3, the confusion gets a little more sensible in this chapter. Gennai's role is rather interesting. I enjoy having him involved.

The Keeper of Worlds, I'm glad it's a bit confusing. The story is kind of aimed in that direction.

thats-a-moray, thanks for catching all of that. Hikari's character is a little bit unusual, even in the original show, she was kind of... not like an ordinary kid. I never was perfectly sure as to why but... I hope I portrayed her all right.

A few of the things mentioned in this story, such as the Virus and the Others mentioned in other chapters, are explained in other stories. _The Blight_ is not going to be explained for a bit but the Virus is expanded upon in Our Souls, Conjured. I recommend giving that a read and a review, as I hope you review this one. It is an OC fic, but canon still appears, as canon always appears in a majority of my OC fics. If it doesn't, expect real life history. :) It's that kind of series.

Also, I will be gone from July 4th-13th. I will try to somehow update anyway. :D

Enjoy and please drop a review you guys.

* * *

_**Chapter 3: In the Algorithm**_

Lucemon coughed and grimaced. It was looking as though his plan had worked. It had been quite a while since everything had been so extreme though. _This will be worth it, _he reminded himself. She had something, his something, and he wanted this silly world to remember it. "I will not allow this to end."

_You do not allow much to end, old friend._

"Shut up, Dagomon." Beneath his exhausted fingers, the phasing rippled and swam, shifting towards him.

_I do not advise continuing your attempts there. I'm barely keeping her here._

"It's not like it's hurting you." He looked at Hikari, whose body was slowly turning white. "Come on, pretty girl," she encouraged. "Show me what you can do with that fear of yours." It seemed as though she heard, as the light under his fingers brightened, warming him with a gentle, loving fire. She mouthed something at him.

"I can't disappear."

He smiled and the furious gleam left his eyes. "You won't, pretty girl," he said softly, reverently. Not if you keep doing that. You're going to be a beacon, a beacon for us all." He licked his lips. "I can't help but feel... a little giddy."

Renamon burst into the room as he spoke, all of her fur standing on end. "Sir, there's a-"

He waved his free hand, slowly stepping away from Hikari's form on the floor and kneeling to it. "Hush, silly bat, I know. Calm down."

"_Sir!" _Her voice quivered with righteous indignation, blue eyes trying to set his hair on fire. "There is a light so bright anyone can see the castle through the ground! The Digimon are frozen. You cannot say-"

"That's wonderful. Better results than I expected," he said with a tiny smile. "Do relax. It's not hurting anyone. If it was, I would have stopped it."

"You..." Renamon snarled. "Can be such a brat."

The angel shrugged. "Perhaps." He lifted Hikari into his arms. "Anything for the sake of progress, my dear. She will tire herself out in time. It will be all right." Placing her on top of the sheets, he smiled. "Oh, who are you, pretty girl, with a painful destiny like this? Don't worry." His hands had begun to glow again. "I won't leave you alone here in this world... and you will be here for a long, long time."

"Mark my words, you will have a long, _bloody _time of it. I think my friend has taken a shine to you... as I have... as the Gods have..." The light from Hikari's body vanished abruptly and now ruby red eyes slipped closed.

"Oh, pretty girl, what was your destiny?"

...

A roar of pain left his lips, undignified and coarse. Beneath one brown glove, his hand burned and he tore the blasted thing off. It fell harmlessly to the mansion floor, almost mocking him. He glowered at it. He so hated to be mocked. As he turned his red eyes onto the little masses of weakness, his servants scattered. He almost snarled at their cowardice.

"Impudence," he sneered, looking at the swirl on the top of his hand. The demon rose to his feet and had begun to pace. "As if there is any... or could ever _be _any... who could have the possibility of such a thing..." He laughed and returned to his chair. His hand burned and he ignored the pain with a smile, teeth sinking and making gaping holes in his lips.

:"As if there is any who could be an equal to me... in this world... in any world... I, who have been awaiting this destiny for so long... no one can take it from me, no one..."

Still... it was best... always best... to be _sure... _"Pagumon!" he barked.

"Yes, sir," was the immediate reply. The little dark ball glared up at him, something appreciated. This one had spunk. If he lived long enough, he could become worthy of notice.

For now, however...

"Gather a search party. We have something to kill."

The creature made a mockery of a bow with its ear. "As you command, Vamdemon-sama."

The vampire smiled. "As I command, indeed."

...

Lucemon breathed deeply, releasing a small sigh into the night air. Peacetime, relaxation, things worthy of appreciation for someone like himself, especially after today. He hated this place sometimes, its fanciness, its posh pretentiousness every time you so much as desired to open a design of this place had been his own choice; he knew that. However, knowing about your decisions doesn't make them any less regrettable.

"Lucemon?"

He turned from the night sky to pierce the little girl's eyes. She smiled shyly, shifting from foot to foot. Her wide, rosy eyes were glowing, the only testament to her little mishap this morning. She pulled anxiously at her tattered hood, making him pause. Were all human clothes this destroyable? That had to be remedied. _She's such a tiny thing... I forgot they could be made that small._

"Shouldn't you be resting after that ordeal of yours, pretty girl?" The kindness, or if that's what she interpreted it was, made her flush, embarrassed. "Does that mean you're feeling better, pretty girl?" If so, he owed that old fool a gift. Ah wait, she _was_ the gift, wasn't she? _You're welcome Dagomon. _There was a gurgling chuckle.

The girl -Hikari, he reminded himself- fidgeted. "Un... I'm better now, but... what is it... that's trying to make me disappear?"

"Nothing," he answered airily. "Nothing that's your fault. Just... when a world is scared, a world is scared. Everything is set in your way because of it."

"Eh?" Lucemon smirked, remembering himself. His train of thought wouldn't make sense to a Wisemon.

"Apologies, pretty girl." He sighed. "You see, our world is infected with an outside program, like a bad cold that won't go away. An... epidemic."

"Epi-de-what?"

"E-pi-de-mic. Imagine a whole world full of people with colds."

"Oh."

"Yes. And our world, this Digital World of ours, needs things-in this case, some humans- to come and fight it. It summoned those... quite a while ago I must say. However, you aren't one of 're seen as...hmm..."

"Another part of the cold?" Hikari asked.

Lucemon smiled, though the look was bitter. "Yes, pretty girl. The world is scared and it's taking it out on you."

"But... why... why won't it let me go then?"

Lucemon knelt with a shrug, reaching to push back brown hair fringe from her forehead. "It can't. Because of this mark, I would imagine. This is a Nexus Mark" Hikari reached her hand out to touch it over Lucemon's fingers.

"That... weird thingy like a scab?"

He chuckled and mussed her hair back down. "More serious than a scab, lass. Nexus Marks are a sign of power, of a strange, incredible power. Digimon don't normally have it, not unless there is a great duty resting upon them. And... of the humans who have possessed them, you are... incredibly young. Therefore, it is likely you are incredibly strong. So... it can't get rid of you and it's trying, but it's aware that you're something important, so it's unconsciously trying to keep you here."

He saw her face and sighed. "Believe me, pretty girl, I know it doesn't make sense. Just nod your head and pretend you understand the concepts while you aren't here anymore. Who knows: you might grow to enjoy it." Hikari's expression twisted with something, something rather ugly for a young girl. Then it cleared and the darkness vanished from her eyes. He frowned. "What did you do just now?"

She stared at him, big eyes full of dismay. He knew his tone was scolding, angry even, but did not attempt to soften it. "E-Eh?"

"Just now. You had a thought on your face, a bad thought. What did you do with it?"

Hikari smiled with relief. "Threw it away."

"Why?"

"I don't like hurting anyone."

Lucemon was silent a moment. Then he shook his head. "That's unproductive, pretty girl." At her frown, he explained. "It won't help anyone."

"But..."

He sighed and picked her up to rest on his mostly bare legs. "Let me teach you a truth, pretty girl: your way leads to pain. You can try your way, sure, but people will hurt you anyway. Even if you try to hurt them, without meaning to, you eventually will. Some of the most important lessons are full of pain. Learn this now, because from this point, you will hurt a great deal, as will others. You will have to watch pain." Her eyes were filling with tears. She didn't understand, and that was okay. She didn't know the words, but she knew his meaning. "Only through your suffering will your wish be granted. Only the most precious things are given through effort."

Hikari shook, holding back the sobs ready to wrack her.

"Let it out, lass," he soothed. "I am sorry. This will be one of the only times you will be left to weep." She did and he hummed sadly over her ears. Looking at the set of drawers on the other side of the room, he mentally affirmed his position. _I'm starting to care about you pretty girl, and this is the only way I can do so._

…

"Sandstorm."

Gaomon's announcement was met with a grunt of displeasure but little more. Gennai didn't open his eyes to see the other clamber back down to the dark bottom of the hole they had dug. Shamelessly, he curled up against Gennai's arm. "Ain't goin' nowhere t'night," he added. "Wind out there be slicin' some 'mon kabobs."

Gennai sighed and nodded. "They won't be pleased. Any setbacks to the plan..."

"Any good plan needs a setback er' three," Gaomon replied with a lazy flick of the tail. "They ein't needin' ya anyway."

"I'd rather be there."

"Where's yer sense of adventure?"

"Somewhere in this abyss of a pit you dug," Gennai replied, flicking one of the blue ears.

Gaomon snorted."Bastard."

"Keep complimenting me. I enjoy it." Gaomon flicked his tongue in the ultimate of his species' rude gestures before closing his eyes. "How can you sleep in this?"

A shrug was his reply. "Same way you sleep on yer posh futons. Same way people live all o' the time. They accept, endure, or make it better. Now shaddup and sleep. The girl needs ya."

Gennai did, but not before a gentle parting shot."Were you just trying to sound smart?"

"Go jump in the Dark Area."

…

"Up... I... go!"

Hikari landed on the tile floor and waited. When her legs didn't wobble, she took a few hesitant steps towards the door. The sleeves of her pajama pants dragged, but she ignored them. Pushing the door shut behind her, she took in the chaos around her and stared, fascinated. It was so much different during the day! Everyone was running around, carrying things and talking and bouncing. It was so... amazing!

"Good morning, little human."

Hikari turned and craned her neck as high as she could. She saw blue eyes and a poof of white fur under yellow. "Good morning... um..."

"Renamon, my dear," said the creature, kneeling down. The endearment slipped out automatically, like she was talking to a few of the Baby pages instead of a human child. She smiled anyway. This child had caused such a stir the other day, but looking at her, you could not imagine how. Everyone reported well, in any case, so for now, she would let their madman decipher it more.

"Renamon-san," Hikari finished. "Is something happening?"

"Oh, it's just the breakfast rush," replied the fox with a chuckle. "Our prince is still holed up in his room, probably didn't sleep again. Or slept on his books." Her words are fond and amused at the same time. Hikari wondered if Renamon-san worried more about Lucemon than Lucemon did. "He wants to help you, little human," Renamon added, gently guiding her to walk with one gloved claw. "Finds you interesting."

Hikari flushed with guilt. "Um... I'm sorry."

"Why? We ought to apologize with you, what with all of his poking and prodding. Knowing him, his bloody plot will work..."

Hikari blinked and then, the unbidden words tumbled out of her mouth. "Renamon-san... do you _like _the prince?"

She shrugged. "Well enough, I suppose, when he's behaving himself." She shot a glare towards a nosy looking pair of Digimon, who scattered at once. "There's a reason he's our Prince, after all. Wish he would be a bit more normal about it."

"Normal?"

She chuckled. "Prince is old and crotchedy, past his angel-face. Needs a cane, he does."

Hikari tried to imagine Lucemon with a walker and giggled. Renamon smiled. "So you can be a little girl." Instantly, the toddler frowned. "You have old eyes, child. Old, pure eyes. Scary combo is what that is. Powerful are those eyes, and power can be misused." To her own surprise, she poked the child in the forehead. "Don't forget to be a little one, before those days are lost forever."

"I don-"

"Good morning, pretty girl. I was looking for you." Hikari saw Lucemon's wings poking from behind a large stack of books. On top of them sat a beautiful box, its clasp a shining gold. "Renamon, grab that for her, would you?"

He earned obedience and an eyeroll. "What _have_ you been studying, you silly prince?"

"The ways to save the pretty girl's life, of course. Simple enough process, really. Just have to fool the consciousness of the planet into thinking she's one of us."

"Few humanoid Digimon exist," Renamon stated dryly, watching Hikari's confusion as she placed the box in her tiny hand.

Lucemon scoffed. "You presume that's my full plan. Do keep up. Any mundane fellow can do such a thing. Open the box, pretty girl."

"What if I break it?" she asked, cradling it close to her chest near her whistle. It was almost too hard to hold.

"So much the better," he replied. "Boxes are nothing but clutter. I doubt you can break the inside. No one has." His blue eyes sparkled with delight and Renamon groaned.

"What _is _it, you kook?"

"A gift I found in my possessions," he replied. "Perfect for a star who fell from the sky." Hikari, still puzzled, opened it.

She let out a little gasp. "It's pretty!"

Inside were a pair of dark bracelets, each layered with ovals of gold and silver and dark blue. At the inside were small, carefully written grooves wrapping in a circle around the indent of where the red gem rested on the top. They were too big for Hikari's wrists, but they were so beautiful she didn't care. At her touch, they hummed, warming to her fingertips. Lucemon chuckled. "It knows who you are," he said, pride coloring his voice. "That Device is a human creation, you know. It wants to meet you. But... who is it?"

"I..." Hikari began. Her voice was soft, too soft. "The light... beyond the moon... is forgotten by the birds... The squall in the dark is... remembered by the angels. My shadow is the light from the sun." A smile began to form on her face, and she felt relief, warm, steady relief under her skin. These words she had never spoken... they felt good, right. "In the heavens, I shine. In the sky, I soar. Here sings my resolute soul! Dance with me in the starry field, _Euthalia."_

A pause of breath and then a quiet voice, female and robotic, chimed. ["Initiating unison. Welcome, my master."]

Scarlet light burst from the gem and wrapped Hikari in a cocoon of ribbons from her hands to her eyes. She didn't even seem to notice, eyes looking so childishly pleased.

Renamon whirled on Lucemon's grinning visage and glowered. "What have you done now?

"Very little," he replied. "Only given her what belongs to humans in the first place. Ancient human artifacts and all of that."

Renamon hissed, clamping a claw over her heart in long-habitual superstition. "_The Blight."_

"Oh, aye,: he agreed, mimicking her. "Our world was young then; it didn't know any better. Believe you me, all the scrolls get that one wrong." Renamon snorted, still glaring. "Oh, she's fine. If she hadn't known the code, or heard the code at any rate, she wouldn't be harmed either. Shame these won't work on us." He smiled. "Humans were always good at making things when it came right down to it."

"Are we only good for destruction then?" the fox asked with a cross of her arms. The girl was intriguing _her _now. Was this what inspired the consensus?

"I wouldn't say so. We have created quite a bit of good. Only..." Lucemon sighed. "We lost something incredible in The Blight. Euthalia is a twin weapon, created in the fashion of the Olympians. Imagine that! Our problem could have been solved before it began! Alas, all I obtained was the one, the most difficult one. It's a weapon of balance, it is. With it, I believe she could put an end to our little problem."

Renamon snarled. "The Tempest Virus will kill her! You can't expect her to absorb that at this stage! The worlds are trying to erase her!" She raised a glowing paw. "You gave me an order, sir, and-"

"I expect you to carry it out if she says no," he replied, boredom making him frown. "She will agree, however. She doesn't wish to die."

"She's like a _Baby _level!"

"What baby has a Nexus Mark on their forehead?" he finally snapped, glaring at her.

Renamon didn't flinch. "You," she replied simply. "You and I, once."

"Yes, and you've died a thousand times over to prove it," he said bitterly. "I have no peace, no rest." He spread his arms. "Look at us now, friend. I do not want her like us."

"I believe it is too late."

"Let me try to believe otherwise." He turned on his heel. "Send her to me when this is finished and check on Babamon. The woman has been obsessively knitting since sunrise. I expect she's done more than fulfill expectations."

"Lucemon... you can't..."

Lucemon smirked. "She's going to Folder. I know she will."


	5. Chapter 4: Away We Must Go

_**A/N:** _Early update because I'll be gone tomorrow. Thanks you guys. Thank you crestoflight3. I love your Lucemon thoughts. As for Pagumon... well you're onto something. :D

Enjoy and please review

* * *

_**Chapter 4: Away We Must Go**_

"That's it, lass, move yer hands and... there we go. Perfect!"

Hikari blinked at the old woman, who seemed to have no eyes. Her pink pajamas hung in tattered rags on a rack. "Thank you," she whispered, fingering the black ears sewn into her new hooded sweater. This is too pretty, she thought, examining the black material that almost reached her legs. She shivered a bit as the woman easily picked her up (what a strong woman, this Babamon person) and placed her on the stool. Hikari could feel Renamon-san's eyes watching her from the corner as she now pulled on the shorts. She wondered what was causing her to stare. On her wrists, the girl felt Euthalia thrum as it went through its... ac-ti-va-tion process, as the device had called it when she had woken it up. It had shrunk to fit her in the cocoon, and had said many, many things.

She knew what her brother would say: bracelets can't talk. But they certainly could. You just had to listen. That was how she knew the words. Euthalia knew them and was whispering for someone to say them. Why was it that when people grew bigger they forgot to _listen_?

[Master.]

Hikari blinked and saw Babamon's knitted mouth tutting in disapproval. "Um... are-are you okay?"

The old woman chuckled and continued to examine her with interest. "Perfectly, just... something is missing from this. That zipper... it seems lacking. And your feet..." She lifted one in a hand and Hikari only stared. She had no clue what the woman was talking about. "Well, dearie, you have soft feet. You aren't used to walking, are you?"

"Um... no, but..." Hikari thought a moment. She needed the right words... not the colors, the words. "Euthalia wants me to go to that place... where all the water is. She says I can be okay, if I go there. All of them say I will be."

"All," repeated the old woman in a thoughtful voice. Hikari nodded.

"The gurgling voice did, Euthalia, Lucemon, um...I think the colors think I will. The boy didn't, but... I don't know what happened to him."

Babamon glanced in Renamon's direction and Hikari tried to follow her "Renamon-san... what's wrong?"

The fox was shaking, trembling with rage. Oh, she understood now. She understood how Lucemon was going to make this work. Calming herself outwardly, she smiled as only a fox could. "Babamon-sama, will you lead this girl to the Prince's chamber when you're finished? I need to speak to him... about his mighty irksome habits."

"Do as you please," said the old woman with a bored smile. She turned back to Hikari. "Tell me more of these voices and colors, child, while I fix you a pair of shoes."

Hikari nodded, seeing no reason not to. Renamon left in a rush of pounding feet. Hikari blinked. "Um... is she okay?"

"Oh yes," Babamon answered. "Merely upset she didn't see what the rest of us already knew. Now.. the voices and the colors child. They are important. I might have to change my design."

Hikari nodded, and began to speak, Euthalia's red gem occasionally flashing in time with her words. "I don't think the voices are all bad," she finally ended her speech, looking at at Babamon with a grin. "They all want to help... or for me to help... or something like that."

Babamon chuckled. "Indeed, my dear," she agreed, wrapping an odd, black fabric around Hikari's left foot. "Spirits tend to be not all bad. Powerful creatures too. Misguided yes, like our prince, but not all bad."

"Mis-gui-ded?"

"You go about something and do it right but it comes out that that was wrong. Grown-ups do it all the time." Babamon's voice, chipper and cracking, said these words without a care as the stitches weaved in and out. "Just because something wants to do right doesn't mean it will. That's an okay thing."

"So... should I ignore them if they come back?" the girl asked, swinging her free foot.

"Of course not!" the woman said in a scandalized voice, even though her smile grew bigger. "They are precious... oh what's a word for children like you... treasures, yes, that's quite the word, that is, for you to use. You know very well that this journey will hurt, you and others. It's important to have these treasure so maybe it can be less painful."

"You mean..." Hikari frowned, her young mind trying to grasp this. "If I listen, people might not get hurt?" The Digimon watched her face light up with glee at her nod and smiled. "Then I'll keep listening! If someone talks, I definitely will!"

"Then you have nothing to fear, child." Babamon smiled and moved to clothe her other foot. "Not a thing."

"... Except fighting. Euthalia told me about fighting. And Koromon fought... and... went away." Her face scrunched. "Fighting takes people away. Mama told me that."

"Fighting is important, child. People despise it, but it is." The old woman pulled her grey bun tighter and continued to work. "What did the device say?"

Hikari shook her tiny head, black hood almost falling off. "What you said."

[To fight is to protect people.] Euthalia's addition was rather loud so close to Hikari's ear. [To fight will let you become strong.]

"... I don't want to."

[The world isn't about what you want, Master. You will be stronger for it.]

"... Is strength good?"

[Yes.]

Hikari drooped a little, hood falling over her eyes. "... I'm scared."

"Being scared will help you live," Babamon said to her, taking her right foot and adjusting the fabric around it. "Being scared isn't the only thing you must be, but start with being scared, child."

"... I'm so small."

"We are all small to gods, to your voices, I believe." Babamon picked her up again and placed her to the floor. "You will be bigger someday, but you need to live until you can be a bit bigger. Now," Her voice turned surprisingly sharp. "Walk in those. The fabric is important."

"O-Okay!"

…

Fury was something he knew well.

He was not an angry creature of course, merely... _combative_. he did know how to control his rage, out of necessity. Some things he was above... particularly baseless rampage. A Guardian did not stoop to that. Otherwise, all he would have on his shoulders was regrets, and not lives.

Gods knew regrets better than men.

So, with profound patience, something you learned after finding you had twelve eyes, four paws, and a tendency to make iron toys, he waited, lashing his large, purple tail. Baihumon knew that his careful vigil was worth it.

_It's starting._There was a tinny voice at his ear, and Baihumon grunted at it. The voice formed into a person, a child with mauve hair._It will come after you first._

"_**I've lived nearly as long as you, boy,"**_the tiger said in a quiet, solemn growl. "_**If that were a surprise, I'd be a fool. Aren't you supposed to be watching our irregularity?"**_

The boy frowned. _I found the afflicted- Hikari, her name is- already. Someone's messing with her. There's nothing I can do, especially considering _you_amplified things. She has to make it on her own now. _He raised small hands, then lowered them, transparent appendages horribly silent. _I can still speak to that poor thing, but... not much._He raised dark eyes up at the tiger and sighed. _What are you planning to do with her? When that bird is concerned..._

The tiger made a rumble in his throat, like a human laugh. "_**Nothing too horrible. Just patching a few holes... Have you made any progress towards that other issue?"**_

There was a shake of the head. Obnoxious children, all of them. _Found the troublemaker yes. Find the cause of the trouble? Hardly. They didn't even seem to notice what they've done. _He sounded mildly dismissive of the whole thing.

"_**Did you?"**_Baihumon challenged, staring up at the eyes flecked like a starry sky. "_**Did you, Iris?"**_

Iris shrugged. _More than you false gods ever do._

Baihumon almost snarled, then stopped himself. At this moment, he could not disagree with the spirit, the power. None of them knew how to regulate their children -the Digimon- in their world. "_**That one... he could stop all of this in a moment, if he desired. Why doesn't he? We are young. Destroying us has no merit..."**_

Iris floated to rest his hand over Baihumon's paw. _That child... he is the most difficult to grasp out of all of you. He wants something he cannot have anymore._

"_**Which is?"**_

_Death, _ Iris said with a laugh. _I suppose, when he awoke, that was all he ever wanted. I gave him all the wrong things._

"_**And we have the right ones?"**_

_Obviously not. _ Iris turned his head towards the sound of a great crash._I suppose that is my sign to depart. I have to keep protecting that little girl._A pause. _Take care, Baihumon._

Baihumon made a noise, a sadly nostalgic sound. "_**You haven't said those words to me since I was a Baby."**_

_I have been a poor caretaker to you._The child vanished and Baihumon turned with a sigh.

"_**As have we all. Live on, little irregularity."**_

…

"Ow!"

Gaomon glanced back. "Did you trip, old man?"

Gennai frowned, straightening. "Something like that." He rubbed at his head, grimacing as the flying whispers assaulted him on all sides. Whatever had just happened, it clearly wasn't good. The whispers, his guides, were completely muddled now, flying like angry Flybeemon and wailing. It was like Red Alert, but worse.

"How can yeh trip just out of sand? Gaomon said with a playful grin. He continued his steps, ceaseless once more. "Did you get a psychic call the wrong way?"

"No, Homeostasis got hit the wrong way and I'm paying for it. Painfully." Genna rubbed at his temples, pushing sticky pieces of brown hair out of his eyes. "A moment, if you would." Instantly, the other stopped. At least they were out of the Server desert before this had happened, though it had taken way too many days for his liking. At least this provided a less likely opportunity of death by Airdramon.

"Oi, what are you doin' back here so soon?"

Gaomon waved a gloved paw dismissively towards the nearby trees. "Old friend wants to see th' wonder fer his self." He yawned while Gennai regathered himself, trying to follow both conversations. "How's dat dere fron' anyway?"

There was a high-pitched giggle above their heads. "Three days late, ain't ya? The human's long gone."

Gennai froze. "Where?" he gasped as the pain in his head began to double, making his eyes water. "Where did it go?" His voice was a snarl and he winced at it.

"Folder," the other replied cheerfully. "To be with its _own_kind." The emphasis in that word was just mocking enough to make Gennai wince. A child did not deserve such coldness, such... nasty thoughts. But... it was the mindset of many of the Digimon. Isolation was best to everyone. It was why Folder was practically abandoned.

The harmony of the old days was long gone... it was like the Genesis days all over again.

Like that day...

"_You killed them! Innocent people!"_

"_They killed _him_. An innocent kid. They _destroyed_him. You feel sorry for them?"_

"_It was only one!" he remembered shouting, still young, still horrified. Still foolish._

_Red eyes had laughed at him. "They didn't exactly step up and say no, did they?"_

"_There are children here! Innocent as that one boy!"_

_A scoff. "Innocent shields yes." The other shrugged. "I tried. I saved ten. They're over there, lucky." The red eyes engulfed his blue, full of that eternal fiery hatred. "Don't you screw them up anymore A kid made you, saved me. Honor that, you bastard. Honor that."_

Gennai shook himself. He didn't like thinking of The Blight. He knew it. He knew it so well. Protect kids. Protect the remnants of humans. Well, he knew how well that had gone.

He looked at his hands and banished the whispers from his focus. "Whatever may have happened," he whispered. "You sent me here." Then the words of the other Digimon registered. "Sir, did you say Folder?"

"Aye," the other agreed with happy giggles. "Saw the grapevine singing about it. One of the scary guards of that prince took her thataway yesterday morning! Oopsie~" It vanished, voice fading into trees.

Gennai turned to Gaomon, who blanched. "Lad, yeh cain't="

"I have orders," the man reminded him.

"An' I'm da one wit' da death sentence if I go!" The dog protested. "I mean... that thin' started dere!"

"So stay here," Gennai said simply. "I'm not going to stop you." He turned and started to walk. He still had to find a boat. He wasn't built to survive teleportation, nor did he think it was possible. Then Gaomon's fangs sank into his left arm and he whirled, glowering. He could still feel _pain_. "Enough with the panic, Gaomon. If I am forbidden to fear, you are forbidden to run with your tail between your legs!"

"That's 'cause it ain't yer issue!" Gaomon spat, furs bristling. "It don' jumble your data or take yer chances away! It don't make you a puppet er' nuthin! If that human's goin' there, then that human is goin' to die!"

The man shrugged. "Then I have to save her."

"Den yer cray-cray."

Shrug. "Quite So stay here, you superstitious Child."

"I stick wit' my guns," Gaomon replied with a nauseous smirk, trotting next to him. "Jes' wish my guns weren't aimin' there." He shook his large head, shaking a little. "Dang keed, why _Folder_?"

"No one's safe from it, if that's a comfort. The Tempest Stream affects all, even the gods."

Gaomon laughed. The shaky noise was like crying. "They don' gotta watch, do they?"

"They can still die?"

"Oh really?"

"Quite so." Gennai scraped his hand against a tree trunk. "Baihumon's infected. And he supposedly messed with that mysterious human before that, possibly to combat this. If he dies... we lose one of our only leads."

"An' if the keed goes..."

Gennai shrugged. "Kiss our race goodbye. If one can die,so can the rest. And they all will."

…

"Are you all right, my dear?"

"Mm!"

Renamon chuckled at Hikari's delighted whoop as she ran. Four legged running wasn't optimal for her species, but if you were in a hurry with a burden, it was the best option. The girl's fingers scrunched tighter in her neck fur, and there was a snuffle of a sneeze by her ears. Normal sounds; they were something she would enjoy while she could. Lucemon said Folder was currently a dying continent. It was a screaming place, no place for a child.

Even less of a place for a child with spiritual inclinations either.

She was going to bury the prince for that one.

Hikari had known they were going someplace scary. It seemed that the strange device was very talkative. It let out a soft buzz to prove it, causing Hikari to start in her slowly dozing position. "Would you like to rest?" Renamon offered. "I could go faster if you wanted me to carry you in some other way."

"But... won't I sleep for ages?" the little girl asked, yawning. "Cause I'm not acka.. acc...um..."

"Accustomed, and that would be all right." She wondered how the prince would decide the girl would recall such things. "If you are still, I will be ignored and we will be safer. Come now." She stopped and let the small girl, in her new, loose outfit, roll to the ground. She picked up the girl like a bundle of Yukidaru furs, watching the device on her wrists glow in unison with her forehead. _How strange humans are, to die with these in existence. _The Olympus Twelve had been long gone... but their powers must have remained. They had remained for the humans to take advantage of.

Somehow, Lucemon had managed to acquire one. Then again, he would, wouldn't he?

"...Renamon-san?" She looked up to see the rickety bridge. "Is..." Hikari murmured. "Is that safe?"

"Monochromon roll across it daily," Renamon replied, walking on. The girl nodded. Whatever that was, it must be heavy. Still... she looked at it suspiciously anyway. "My dear, this will be the least of your troubles. Folder is not friendly to anyone these days, least of all those like you."

Hikari yawned. "Why?"

_Do you always want a why?_ "You aren't a Digimon. To some, that's enough."

"...That's..." A sigh. "Silly."

"Indeed it is. Indeed it is." Hikari's breathing abruptly eased and the glow of Euthalia grew.

[Now approaching thirty percent integration.]

Now what the hell did that mean?


	6. Chapter 5: No Answers in Quicksand

_**A/N:** _Hey guys! I managed to update. To all of you who are faving and following, my greatest thanks. Please drop a review or a PM or we can just chat, I don't care. I just want to know you guys are out there. Hehe.

crestoflight3, it's okay to not have the plot all that straight. This one is starting to bring it all together. The next one is continuing that and hopefully after that it will be smooth sailing. The Keeper of Worlds, for once that is actually a good sign. Considering she is kind of defenseless, it's very good. Also, to the person who told me of some errors in the chapter, I have yet to have the chance to correct them. I will get to them soon.

Pardon the repetition between Gennai and Gaomon. They act like a couple of kids.

The next chapter will have an interesting play on words. If someone gets an accurate guess on it, they win a character cameo for Aestate. :D

For now, enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 5: No Answers in Quicksand**_

"Have I told you that you're as batty as a Pipismon?"

"At least once a week, Gaomon."

"Well, I'm saying it _double_ this time around."

"Then _go back_."

"I don't abandon m' duties."

Gennai stopped himself from continuing the argument, _again_, and resorted to mumbling curse words he knew the dog would hear. Sometimes he wondered why the dog followed his programming if he was just going to grump his way through doing what they said. He knew a V-mon who was as chipper as a war effort, for example, and he knew of Viruses who were the politest individuals, even though their design was to maim and pillage. Poor fellows were hopelessly lonely and stigmatized, but the world was a better place for them than it was in the Genesis era. In the end, however, he appreciated the little bastard for what he was worth, even when he made a Jijimon seems optimistic. "We've been at this argument for days now," he finally said to the disgruntled beast.

Gaomon smirked. "Passes the time, don' it?"

Gennai glowered at the crooked expression. "Bug off."

The Digimon flinched, offense making his hackles rise and fall."You wouldn't dare."

"Try me," Gennai sniffed. "I've been at this job too long. Try me."

Gaomon looked him up and down and shook his head, turning away. "Not riskin' it wit' ya. Yer stupid enough to try."

"Mighty wise decision, that one." Gennai, supremely satisfied that the argument was over, returned to his thoughts. He knew Gaomon had every reason to worry. Gennai had stayed out of the loop regarding this for mildly selfish reasons. He had enough on his plate without the world already dying from something else. This was a case that had to be solved itself. Now, to his misfortune, he was going right blind into the thick of it. To be honest, since he had the manufactured emotions to make a note about it, it really sucked.

_Baihumon's what's putting the real dent into things..._ The White Tiger never really interfered with the workings out the world beyond as much as Zhuqiaomon or Qinglongmon, but when he did, it tended to make big splashes that left the Digital World (and supposedly the human world) reeling for at least six data cycles. For the human world, these days, that was probably no more than a blip in the radar... but Gennai held little interest with them as well, and as such knew very little. Perhaps the human would have an idea... though he sincerely doubted it, what with the fact that it might be dead by now. Ferocious monsters, helpless fleshy creature running around, the answer to that equation was not friendly. He had to hurry... but he had to be wary as well.

He sighed. This _had_ to be difficult, didn't it?

"Gaomon."

"Whaddaya want?" The dog looked down from the shivering trees and frowned. "Air's movin'," he said by way of apology, ears shrinking back. Not supposed to bark at the master. Whining was okay, but barking? Not okay. "Makes me nervy. What's it?"

Gennai sighed. If the dog could swallow his pride, so could he. "Bring me up to speed... please."

Gaomon swallowed, his amber eyes blinking slow, concentric rhythms. "Well," he said sheepishly, rubbing at the back of one ear. "Dere ain't much to tell really." He pulled at the laces of his gloves with nervous front paws. "Is... is like... I ain't seen it so I ain't never sure but... i's not a virus 'corrdin' to some crazy bloke, Lucemon prolly... but it does stuff like one. It's a... human word fer dis is slippin'... whazzit called?"

"A hacker?"

"Close, but no Digiweed joint." Gaomon shook his head. "Gimme a mo', my brain ain't got da CPU yours do." Gennai obeyed, looking at their surroundings passing by with only a mild interest. This would have been easier with a car, but that program never liked to listen at the best of times. "Ah wait, dat's it. Crack program. That crazy bloke was callin' it that. Like... da program gets in yer Core, while a virus gets into what's outta it. If it were a virus, it would be gone by now... appa'ently. I dunno how dis guff works."

Gennai nodded thoughtfully. "I supposed, considering Digimon schematics, that's true."

Gaomon snorted. "Yer talkin' to a dog, not an Andromon. Even a broker like me ain't no genius." He shook his head, ears flapping. "But yah, dat's the word I heard. It's in these chips, or da air, or sommat."

"Then why did they decide sending human children was a good idea?" Gennai muttered, rolling his eyes. "They don't- we don't- have the time to go hunting down every infected individual with a chip at the back of their tail!"

He earned a snort for his words. "Jes cause I sell good info, don't mean good intel comes back. I ain't sure. I'mma guessing dey were scared, or dere's sommat in humans dat ain' in Digimon. Considerin' yer old days, they might be hopin' dere's some way to get da power outta dem to... burn the virus out. I ain' sure. Or... an' dis is a big _or_," He paused, taking a few testing whiffs of the air. "They wanna blast Folder outta da world. Humans are destructive enough fer dat, righ'?"

"Too much so," Gennai said quietly. "But so are you." Gaomon bared his fangs playfully in reply. Gennai laughed, then sighed. "That's a risky venue. The worlds are too out of sync for this to end properly."

There was a shrug. "The keeds were selected fer what they were selected."

"Chosen?" Gennai inquired, feeling bile up in his throat.

Gaomon let out a barking laugh. "Oh yah, we're gonna let go of _dat _cultural taboo. We're a slow race, ya fart. Best to let 'em remain what dey are until da high-Unimon legs fall off."

The man looked down as they walked. "If we bicker over a simple title, then why do we even desire them around?"

"You think that _Ocean _would want to help us? Humans are all we got... an' it sucks."

…

The little girl's breathing was so slow, so weak. She almost couldn't hear it over the gentle, steady beeps of Euthalia. Her eyelashes fluttered once in a while, but during the endless days of walking, that was not a comfort.

Once again, Renamon wished Lucemon were here.

Oh, she was still angry at him. He was expecting a child, one who, according to some human manual, was affected in the head, to do all of this because she was little and believed there was nothing wrong with it. That was silly, dangerous. She was practically an Upamon, for all the good she could do. But younger creatures saw what their elders did not and felt what they forgot to sense. Made them excellent trackers and malleable for... well, whatever else. Ethically... even by Digimon standards... that was not okay to do. However, unlike her, he had his reasons to do it, and the power with which to make sure everything worked. Renamon needed his certainty, the certainty of his orders more than anything right now.

This made her miss the old days, when they were small and knew nothing.

She sighed, listening to the tiny breaths as a form of rhythm. The girl was not dead, at least. She still lived on her world's circadian rhythm. It would take a long time for it to shift, he had said. He was mostly interested in what happened after that. Damn fool.

"Euthalia," Renamon said abruptly, wrestling herself to the present.

The gems gave a gentle pulse. [My master is resting. Would you like for me to wake her?]

"No," she said awkwardly, feeling foolish. For God's sake, perk up. It's just a machine. "What are you, precisely?"

[A Device meant to channel human power, in response to potential Digital threats. I am to keep the balance between the two, as are the other eleven of my Constellation prototype generation.]

Renamon grimaced. Eleven more of the bastards didn't sound comforting in the slightest. "... Were there any more, besides your collection?"

[No.] It was silent a moment. [Digimon created Devices in response to them. I am unaware of what they are. The loose term that was heard over the years was Virtue Capsules.]

Renamon paused a moment. Then she shook her head. "If they were based on Devices for humans... then wouldn't they be dependent on humans?"

[That was the flaw my creators noted in their design. Before the human race was extinguished here, it was noted that Digimon had a high difficulty using their own Devices as smoothly as they had used the original power.]

The fox hesitated. That basically meant they had shot themselves in the foot. Wonderful. She sure was glad she hadn't been around then. "Could those capsules... possibly be on Folder?"

[The last records stating their usage reported them being there.] Then it added, almost like a human's afterthought. [I will protect my master.]

Renamon smiled weakly. She could respect the optimism, even though a drop was only a part of a monsoon, one that could not hope to change it,

Hikari's face abruptly scrunched and the spiral on her forehead glowed pure white. Renamon mentally panicked but let her legs take off running. She had no idea what was going on now, but it was certainly bad news.

Damn Madman Prince, couldn't even leave her an instruction manual for budding wish energy.

…

Hie head burned.

Even in the cool darkness, he felt like he was about to vomit. From his fingertips to the back of his head, light tried to worm its way into view. It tried to make his skin scream with its warmth, inviting him to it. It was welcoming, all could be forgiven...

Taking a nearby knife, Vamdemon spun it and stabbed it into the mark, glaring furiously at his hand in the gloom.

He had heard its cajoling song too many times to find it worth listening to.

Closing his eyes, he thought of a spell, of a spell to overpower even the brightest light. "The darkness swallows..." And that was as far as he got before the agony raced up his arms and legs, protesting with a sweet song. "Im... possible..." he rasped, rage welling up in his rotted heart.

"Vamdemon-sama!" Voices chorused his name, small, frivolously loud. He had the sudden urge to crush all of them beneath his heel, in order to garner silence.

"Fools..." he snapped in a whisper, wishing his head would stop aching so he wouldn't have to squint to glare. None of them saw the greater cause. None of them could see this was only a minor setback, an illness that he would slay in due time. They were all so weak and desperate. Hopeless ingrates. "Any progress made?" Vamdemon finally hissed, ignoring their flinching faces and wide eyes.

Pagumon, the bravest fool, smirked just a bit wider. "Yes, Vamdemon-sama!" His voice didn't even think of quavering, by the sound of it. "Alraumon has reported multiple surges of Holy-power from Folder Continent and Circuit Peninsula! One in particular had an extreme side effect, which might have altered something between barriers. She said she was not certain, but was having trouble looking into it." He shrugged his ears. "Apparently, zombies make bad informants."

Vamdemon smiled and strengthened his stance. Good... that was... quite promising. No one would interfere in those areas... particularly not the Madman Prince... he was as neutral as they came. And Folder was dying... they would welcome a little push off of that particular cliff.

There was, of course, the possibility of things going wrong. However, Vamdemon had a contingency plan. Destiny was always on his side. Up until now, it had ensured his safety, ensured his prosperity. There was no reason for it to do any other thing. After all he had given up and broken for his fate to be realized in its glory... what worth would there be in failing now?He was so close...

Not. Now.

There was no other way he could exist. He would prevail, and consume even the sun into his night sky. No matter the millenia it took, no matter the cost that would touch his conscience.

Vamdemon looked at the twisting light under his glove and it pulsed, turning pitch-black. Smoky tendrils began to slither from his fingernails.

"Now then..." the vampire sang. "Now that I know where you are... let me see if I can grasp _who_ you are."

…

Hikari felt like a ragdoll trapped under the leg of a couch.

It was really painful. It wasn't like the phasing at all. Someone was trying to pull her away from where she was with tongs. They were tongs made of burning wax. She wailed and thrashed, screaming her dismay for the world to hear. Hikari had the dim thought that if she were bigger, this wouldn't hurt at all. Then she dismissed it because the thought was utterly stupid. Any kid would cry when they were hurt like this.

She felt the wind brush at her forehead and flinched, hoping Renamon would stop running soon. She wanted to be sick. _But where is safe that she can stop? _She would have to trust Renamon-san's judgment. Closing her eyes, she tried to close her mouth and breath through her nose.

The kitsune dropped the squirming child to curl under the base of a tree and whirled around, paws coiled into a fighting stance. There was no time to shush her and no good reason. They would be found, like it or not.

It was more than likely they already had been.

Renamon poised herself for the first move. She knew the combat basics of how to deal with an infected one. The rapid data breakdown started at the intelligence of the Digital Core. It broke the limiters on the physical prowess and abilities so carefully controlled by the brains of the Digimon. One of the first instincts to go was-

"Fire Blast!"

Renamon dodged and let go of her thoughts, rolling through the dirt and coming up in a crouch. She lunged and slammed a glowing paw into its scaly snout. It only sniffed and opened its mouth again. She swung an arm, stabbing with many glowing leaves. One struck its eye and it roared. She jumped back, shielding the little girl with her body.

"Come on, you great lummox," she snarled, putting both of her paws in front of her face. "I've faced _Lopmon _stronger than you!" Her stance faltered as Hikari let out a horrible screech. Children should not sound like that. Little ones should not scream like that. The light behind her began to burn brighter, as if something was calling it out of her bare skin. Euthalia began to chime, pink sparks issuing from it.

[It is all right, my master.] Its soft monotone cut even through the haze of red beginning to cloud Renamon's vision. [I will keep you safe.]

…

"I'm not certain this is a good idea."

Gaomon shrugged. "Maker's prob'bly dead. Be thankin' us fer makin' use o' it, I'd say."

Gennai sighed. "You say a lot of things, you yappity mutt." He climbed in slowly, hoping to not plunge his foot into the ocean below. This was the only canoe he had seen in the past hour and a half. Grabbing both paddles, he gave Gaomon one more dubious glance. "You said this is safe."

"Safe as yer brain in yer skull," the Digimon agreed.

"... That isn't very comforting, you understand."

The dog smirked. "Haveta get m' kicks somehow," he said, with a sly chuckle. He slipped in and curled himself up at the other side of the boat. "Ain' a big fan o' dis method meself but it's better than waitin' on two dumb fools flyin' hereabouts. So we gotta steal a boat. Sorry, ya old fart."

Gennai only shrugged and began to row. In truth, he had less of a problem with a thievery than he did with the time it would take. This was a cutthroat world these days. However, rowing took time, and he didn't have as much muscle as he would like. Also, say it did break... drowning midway would be a real pain as well as horribly ironic. "You do recall I am directionally challenged."

Gaomon yawned. "Yer challenged in a lotta things, mate."

Well. Gaomon was still unhappy. So much for dogs forgetting things quickly. He understood his reasoning, but it made for bad conversation all the same. Homeostasis wasn't helping to cure his thoughts either. It had been silent for so long now; he was almost concerned the program had shut itself off. They were probably afraid to tempt Fate considering it had already tipped the scales out of their favor. He could forgive their silence for that. Of course, they could always be plotting again. That was usually a bad thing.

He sighed. "Never a dull moment around here." Gaomon grunted his agreement. However, there was a tutting noise, pure diagreement

"If there weren't dull moments, there wouldn't be _interesting _ones. Honestly, do think."

Gaomon bolted up so fast that Gennai heard bones crack. "Oi, ain't ya got a kingdom to run?" he snarled, hackles up. His ears were back and flat against his head, fists raised to punch.

Lucemon merely smirked, hovering after them as carelessly as any damned royal. "Down, doggie," he drawled, looking at Gennai. "I'm more here for the old man than yourself. I know where you're headed. I'm offering to guide you."

"To where?" Gennai asked, blocking Gaomon from his range with one arm.

The angel chuckled. "To the pretty girl, of course. Rumors of her had to have spread by now and quite frankly, that is the sort of thing that gets you out of your hidey-hole by force."

"Oh, really."

Lucemon snorted. "I didn't exactly see you at my doorstep during the Malean War, so yes, really. Simple deduction if you think about it. The only other one heading here doesn't have miracles buried in its bloodstream, which makes you the lesser of two evils old man."

"Yer definition of evil is skewed, crazy man." Gaomon sniffed.

Lucemon sneered. "True, but I don't _like_ this one. He takes _shortcuts_." The whine in his voice was so audible there that Gennai had to openly stare. Lucemon didn't even react to his own eccentricities. "Vamdemon, underground tyrant of Server, international criminal, yes I think he's _such _a bore."

…

Renamon felt the spine under her fist give way and she stepped back, panting. This was bad. Energy was running low. Even though the light had died down, there was no way for Renamon to just carry her out of here, they had already been seen by way too many. Blood dripped from above her left eye and she wiped it away, snarling weakly at the approaching swarm. At this point, a barrier would be nice. A distraction, a hero, _something._ If it didn't happen soon, well, mission failed would be the nicest thing on her grave marker.

A large fist hit her in the belly and she hit the ground, rolling on it like a wrapped rug. Collapsed in front of Hikari's shuddering form, all she could do was watch them come closer. It was even getting difficult to do that. Hikari's own eyes opened and she blindly reached towards Renamon's fur.

"Don't go... Renamon-san... don't go away," croaked the high voice. "Don't... please... don't..."

Renamon laughed and reached with a weak paw to rest her hand on the girl's hair. "Run, my dear", she whispered. "Get up and run!"

Hikari shook her head no.

The kitsune smiled and forced herself to her paws. "Run," she repeated steadily. "This is my duty. Let me carry it out."

Hikari shook her head again and the glow from Euthalia briefly disappeared. [Integration at fifty percent. Initiating Equilibrium Gate for final integration process.]

…

Vamdemon, through his pain, smiled.

…

Hikari understood very little of the goings-on. She knew, naturally, that Renamon was very, very hurt and that things are very bad. She knew Euthalia knew the way to stop all of that, or had found the way in her head to do it. She just didn't know what she had to do with it.

On the field, there had been many colors clashing over each other. All of them attacked Renamon's yellows and blues and were aiming for the pink around her. It was very strange. They all were different, but there was this strange, single color in the center of each, singing strangely. The notes were all soft and lonely, like the days when she was sometimes left in the house alone while Onii-chan went to school. She knew that feeling, that sleepy sound. When it was like that, it was okay to play with toys, but it wasn't the same as playing with people. There was nothing that was the same as playing with people.

She considered her brother's thoughts often these days. He would probably think right now was weird, not scary, but weird. Hikari didn't think it was weird. When Lucemon tried explaining it, it was weird. It was something about the fact that her head and heart weren't in the same place as everybody else's, because she was little, and because there was a different... pattern in her head. Not a bad pattern, but it made being in her own world hard, at least mentally. The term was "dimenshunally unstable" or something. What did this have to do with horses anyway?

Apparently, people like her appeared once in a while. Euthalia was made for people like that, people who could end up in other places without meaning to. It was humans who could hear her, and those kinds of humans. So she had been able to hear the song Euthalia played like a music box because of that.

She didn't quite get it, except that it meant she could use Euthalia to do stuff and this was the kind of stuff she could do. By this, she meant helping Renamon-san. She did not want Renamon-san to go away too. Koromon had already done that. It wasn't fair.

She didn't want anyone else to go away.

[Reach, my master.]

Euthalia.

[Reach. The other half is here. Reach, my master.]

Where was she supposed to reach?

_Listen to the colors._

She had to listen to the colors. They had the answers. But there were so many. Which one was the right one?

Was it the lonely color? Could she call to that one? What did you say to such a lonely color?

Then Hikari smiled, finding herself silly. The answer was obvious, once you gave it a moment. "Do you want to play with me?"

The color made a 'swish' noise and turned to face her. The Digimon, on the outside, slowly grinded to a halt and looked at her.

"Play?" One spoke, the one word a growl

"You want to play?" echoed another, this from the trees.

Hikari smiled. Her head felt clear and painless, and she was able to nod at the color and sit up to prove it. She could play. All children could play. "Yeah!" she agreed. Euthalia thrummed. "But..." she frowned, a toddler pout. "I can only play with _you_. I don't have toys like that!"

Renamon, adrenaline gone, thumped to the ground and wheezed a moment, having knocked the air out of her. Hikari glanced at her, and waved. She was going to be okay. This would work. She could play for days and days in this world. The other Digimon, with their milky blue eyes, looked at the little girl, then the fox, then the human again. "Okay," said the first.

The ground shook and they all fell, laying there in varying states of decay. Hikari kept looking straight ahead, not even blinking at the air.

Then, a small, high voice said, clearly, even delightfully. "The first game is hide-and-seek. Find my body, okay?"

Hikari nodded and Euthalia spoke. [Game start. Let's go, my master.]


	7. Chapter 6: Progress is Backwards

_**A/N:**_Apologies! Sincere and profound. This was supposed to be out yesterday... or well, the day before. But I went out all of that day and it was storming last night. Yeah... I didn't want to risk losing progress like that. hehe.

Thanks crestoflight3 (hehe, your theories... one of them I THINK is answered in this, as for the other... well, we'll see. :) ), Dunk234, and endlessfun for your reviews, and I know someone else followed this, so thank you for that as well.

Today there will be footnotes at the end. :D Also, the thing I was referring to last chapter does appear. Enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 6: Progress is Backwards**_

"What could Vamdemon want with a human girl?"

Yes, Gennai was mildly aware it was a stupid question. However, he still wasn't sure what Homeostasis wanted with the thing, and innocent though it may be, wrapping a small life up in all of this mess struck him as... well, unethical. Then again... the world didn't turn on ethics.

Lucemon examined him critically after those words, a minute smile on his face. With that expression, Gennai could now see why his nickname was spoken with as much venom as it was. He didn't walk, or run, or swim. The bastard was floating over the canoe, with that arrogant little smirk in his eyes too. To prove his point further, the angel _hovered_there over their heads. He looked towards the direction of Folder, expression suddenly pensive as he looked over there. Then, inexplicably, he smiled down at them, fixing his toga and righting himself with no modesty. "Sorry, what?"

Gaomon twitched, amber eyes glowing with malice again. "What the Dark Area..." he began and Gennai winced. Dog was all good and wound up now. "Did you or whoever do to get an interdimensional blighter on the tail of some ruddy human?"

Lucemon tutted. "Now that's not what he said at all," he admonished the dog, looking chuckled. "Really, everyone seems to be under the impression I'm controlling all of this. I'm just taking advantage of what's being given to me. I only helped her to activate a Constellation Prototype and have worked to keep the pretty girl safe. Most of it is her own talent, or... her own selection, via Nexus Mark." He frowned. "It does help that by human standards;"

"You did _what?_"

Gennai didn't know why, but those words, or perhaps the careless way they were spoken, they angered him. Or perhaps it was the implication. "You... You subjected someone to _Euthalia_?" He clenched his fists slowly and remembered, remembered screaming children and booming voices of- "Have you lost your mind?"

"I get that a lot," Lucemon informed him, unperturbed. "But yes, I did."

Gennai almost moved to attack him, though with only two oars in his hands, there wasn't much to fight with. However, Gaomon placed a paw in front of his chest, shaking his head. He, too, was bristling, an effect of his 'master' being threatened, one might say. The dog's ears were back and he was growling so loudly that Gennai had to pitch his voice over to be heard. "Are you aware," he said slowly. "Of the ramifications of performing such an act? Especially to what you call a child? There are reasons why the other eleven are-"

"That is precisely why I did it," Lucemon interrupted. The angel had no right to sound so _bored_about it all. "There is power in being that young and if it is tapped into now there will be a less likelihood of fluctuations in the future. A fluctuation would be dangerous. The Constellations are created to control such possibilities. As it is," he continued. "Her youth is also being harmed by her spiritual sensitivity and synesthesia(1)."

"Synthe-what?" Gaomon muttered.

Lucemon shrugged. 'It's a human term. Synesthesia, apparently interpreting a sense through one pathway automatically activates it in another as well. I..." he hesitated. "Have experience in the area. At any rate, it is a rare condition, one that, from what she has informed my colleagues, involves colors in response to sound(2). Personally, I believe there is more to it than that."

_You would,_Renamon hissed in the back of his mind. _Wouldn't you?_

He ignored it. "Dislike my beliefs all you would like. However, if I'm correct and the formation was caused by her leaving her dimension... imagine the effects it would end up having... that was something I had to see for myself."

"Bonkers is an understatement," Gaomon muttered.

"Quite," Lucemon agreed readily enough. "Thank you for the compliment." Then he frowned. "However, I don't quite understand. Have your superiors given you trouble about this, old man? Have they protested my actions as unethical and worthy of deeming me a criminal? That is quite how you are acting. That would be rather hypocritical of them."

"Wha-What?" Lucemon gave a small sigh.

"Honestly, this is why I don't employ yes-men. Did you even _listen_?" The angel actually waved his hands, throwing them up in exasperation. The smirk seemed disturbing now, well, more than it already had been. It was a painful look, accusing even."She has a _Nexus Mark_! A mark of interference from a different entity! You know, in other words, your _superiors_?"

"I need proof," Gennai said quietly, now regaining his composure the more Lucemon lost his own. "I need evidence of a Nexus Mark. They have not appeared since the Chosen Children-" He clenched his hand over his chest. "Were in this world."

"Ain't the Nexus Mark some kinda curse?" Gaomon inquired. Gennai shook his head, but did not explain.

Lucemon, however, was happy to continue. "Not unless Fate is a curse. It's just a mark that says: 'We of a higher place are using you to fulfill our will, since we cannot carry it out.' For example," He turned around and parted his hair in the back. There was a swirl shape imbedded there, and while it looked like a scar, Gaomon could smell blood from it, scabbed over, but at one point recently, it had been bleeding. "I have had one on me for quite a long time. Since I first hatched, if I recall properly. Having this, I also have proof that she has a mark of her own. Those with these are blessed, or cursed depending on the interpretation or prophesy, with a great task, and the power needed to achieve it. We recognize one another, as we are recognized by the beings above us, pulling our strings. It was on her the night she appeared, blazing the sky like a sunrise, as you recall."

Gaomon nodded. "Da cocoon was a safety measure, b'cause o' da Nexus... den how did she get it? Can dey affect the human world?"

"Who knows? They're powerful creatures, if not gods." Lucemon shrugged. "I do believe that it is unlikely that they did. I believe that was a human's work, being unable to cope with the situation they are in right now. The others likely took advantage of it, the way they take advantage of destructive situations. Don't they, old man?"

Gennai didn't answer still. He had turned the words up to Homeostasis. It shouldn't bother him, all of this should not. This was his duty, to ensure the Digital World had a future to remain, as Homeostasis bid. There was nothing that could not be sacrificed to achieve that. Nothing. He had gone into his almost total isolation to ensure that he didn't have to concern himself with anything else. Yet... somehow, in a part of his mind that registered that people mattered, in the part of him that had reluctantly decided to come outside, he hoped this was not true. If it was, then if he went to pick up this human as ordered, he would doom them.

_Did you mark this child? _

It was silent and for a moment, he believed the silence was not hesitation.

_...We did._

The word _why _brushed at his mind, begging to be asked. But he didn't need to. He knew why. It was deemed necessary. It was deemed important and a justifiable sacrifice. The human would probably die... and whatever objective they needed her for would be achieved in the process. That was the idea of the Nexus Mark. Lucemon was only still alive because the mission had not been completed yet. He was sure of it.

Then... then what? What was he supposed to do?

"_Don't you screw them up anymore A kid made you, saved me. Honor that, you bastard."_

But he had orders to complete and that made him retrieve her. What was the right thing? Duty? Or honoring a dead man's promise. Gennai sighed and closed his eyes. What was the right thing for him to do?

Gaomon turned back to his fellow Digimon, who was pushing the boat forward with a golden light. "'Ey, Prince."

"Hm? What is it, doggie? Need a treat?" He didn't seem all too interested in either of them anymore, more focused on getting them to Folder before dawn.

"Yeah, I'll eat yer arm," Gaomon snarled. "Does dat guy Vamdemon have one o' dem marks?"

"Probably. He has committed a fair few amount of crimes that have increased his power exponentially. Also, it's not like there are millions of Perfects and Ultimates running the world capable of destroying him. Even I would have a tough time of it." He let out a puff of breath and pushed the boat forward again with a grimace. "Now a human shows up, one with a power surge large enough and dense enough to create a natural cocoon around its host and likely, due to its nature, counter his own? Please. If I was in that much danger, I'd go after that myself."

"Nature..." Gaomon was looking at Gennai, who seemed only to be rowing forward for a need of something to do. He barely even saw the paddles touch the water. "Like... "Nature Spirits" or sommat?"

Lucmeon smirked. "You're smarter than I thought."

Gaomon rolled his eyes. "I get that a lot. Den why don't you just go yourself? Go get her, I mean."

Lucemon sighed. "I just complimented you and then you bore me with that rot?" He waited for Gaomon's snarling to quiet before he said, "She won't be safe with me, much as it pains me to admit it, Her powers will go out of control, she'll still disappear, any number of things could happen that are preventable with the She will endanger my Kingdom if she somehow is incapable of turning Vamdemon to dust. And I will start to coddle her... and coddling will get her killed." He turned a burning gaze onto Gaomon at these words. "I have seen enough death, doggie. I have caused more of it in a few thousand cycles than I am willing to divulge. I'd like to prevent this one, even if it means she hates me for it."

Gaomon, surprisingly enough, nodded. He glanced at Gennai. "Don' think I've lived long enough t' know it at da expansive way that ya feel ya do, but... I feel it."

"Well," Lucemon sighed. "At least you do. Now... your friend needs to see reason."

"Reason?" Gennai repeated, looking up from his thoughts to glare at him. "Reason? This is not a simple decision, you must-"

"It is quite simple. You save her, or she dies." Lucemon floated to look down at them, expression turning back towards Folder. "Make yourself available for a change. Do something. You've waited long enough."

Gaomon watched Gennai's eyes and hesitated. He remembered the rumors of milky eyed zombies with scrambled data. He remembered the lower population of eggs. He remembered his friend's face. "Dat keed..." he said slowly. "Why'd you send her to that place?"

Lucemon shrugged. "I don't know. I had a hope. I hoped she could resolve the conflict there, could call to the thing killing ceaselessly over there... and get it to stop. Because she's a human, she can't be infected. Because she is marked, she is not easy to kill. Because there are humans there... and she deserves to see her own kind. Because, by coincidence, she was unlucky enough to be here and be trapped here. Perhaps..." He clenched one fist bitterly. "Perhaps I wanted to defy the higher powers a little bit and... save her. If the Tempest was contained, she could possibly return with the other humans." He smiled again, though this was less mocking. It was an old man's smile. "As I said, doggie, I am tired of seeing people die. However... it exhausts me more to see people break. You can bury the dead, but you can't heal the broken."

He sighed. "I simply hope my old friend is wrong, and I am not too late."

For a while, there was silence. Gennai had fallen into a curious state of silence and mechanical repetition. Lucemon continued to urge the craft onward. The other Digimon merely watched them, thoughtful.

He felt pity for the old fart. The man didn't understand; he was too focused on orders, on commands for a future not even laid out yet, than on the world he was planning to save. He was a self-admitted hermit. He hadn't experienced the endless razing that stalked the continents or seen the measures taken to rid the world of it that were failing. He was simply focused on the next order, and the next. The scope... was beyond him.

But it wasn't beyond Gaomon. And... this was his master's mission

_Poor old man, _ Gaomon thought fondly, rising to his back paws. "if Vamdemon gets the keed, we're screwed, righ?"

"It's a possibility."

Gaomon sighed. "Th' gods 're dumb. What kinda plan relies on one kid bein' able to be dat important?"

"Like you said, a stupid one." Lucemon sighed. "There is a reason that, until now, there haven't been Chosen Children."

…

She really wished her legs weren't so tiny. She couldn't run all that fast.

Lucky for her, she had big eyes, eyes with which to follow the light and its happy humming of delight. The lonely child was very bouncy now, which was good. It was very good.

Behind her, someone screamed and the sound was pinkish-red. Hikari's heart ached at the sound, but she forced herself to not go back to it. She knew very little of what it could ean, but she had an idea. It had been there when the world was trying to eat her. Lucemon's voice had been covered in it. Anger. Anger born from love.

_Renamon-san..._

At least she would be safe. She had led the lonely child away and made him leave his toys. They weren't really toys, but Hikari knew that was how the child saw them.

_Hurry, _whispered the color. _Hurry, hurry, hurry!_

"I'm tiny, stop it!" She shook her head. She didn't know a lonely color could be so... so _bossy_! It was like Onii-chan when he got mad at Mom and wanted something. Thankfully, the voice quieted, and the color winked almost out of sight. She was good at this now. She had watched every color she could, like Babamon had said to do.

Around her, the trees were moving, voices murmuring in low, dark purples and blues that made her head ache. Over the pain, the little girl kept running, only stopping to sip from a small bit of water. Hikari never waited long. She was lonely too, in this place, without Renamon, or Onii-chan... or someone. Just someone to make things fun would be okay.

No one should be lonely. No one should feel that they are always alone.

"Come out," she called, trying to sound happy. "Come out here, come out!" It was getting harder and harder, Hikari noticed, to be cheerful, to be okay. It was getting harder to smile. She wanted to sit down and cry again.

No. Lucemon warned her not to cry.

She was going to play with the one who had hurt Renamon-san.

She was going to _win_, too.

…

"All right, this settles the rot." Gaomon sat up, after an hour or so of ponderous thought. "Yer takin' me up to Folder."

Lucemon raised an eyebrow, having perched himself to hover just to their left. "Oh, I am."

Gaomon nodded. "Yah. The old fart 'ill figure his self out. But... we cain't wait fer 'im to do dat. You can' fer sure. I'm plenty fast. You drop me there... and... I'll... I'll figure sommat out."

For a moment, Lucemon was silent, as though believing he wouldn't keep his word. Then, he lifted Gaomon by the waist and shot off. "Hold tight there. You're too interesting to die by speed flight."

Gaomon chuckled. "Gotcha, ya crazy berk."

A dog's duty was to his master, even to his messes.

…

"Tell me where."

"No."

Renamon's glare was worth admiration, Vamdemon reflected. Powerful resolve. Pain tolerance was high as well, considering the fox had already been badly wounded by the time that they had arrived. He knew the human had been here. The mark pulsed under his glove, probably sensing traces of power. But it was gone now and it was likely the Digimon here knew where. However, it seemed to get a kick out of not giving the vampire the answers he was looking for. She didn't even scream. She laughed.

"You are either a crazy broad," Pagumon said with a smirk. "Or a possible infectee. Maybe both."

"Or," she said slyly. "Not cowed by mere paper cuts."

"Wouldn't call _Bloody Stream _a couple of paper cuts. That's insulting." Pagumon, too, seemed to be pleased. He _would_be useful after all.

Renamon coughed and laughed. "I live to please." The eyes turned on Vamdemon and he held back a hiss.

Mockery. Mockery was evil.

He turned from those disgraceful thoughts and smiled, cajoling. "It would please me if you told me where the human had gone."

"Sure it would," she agreed easily enough. "But the world isn't meant to be easy, or pleasurable. The world is a cruel place, cruel and beautiful."

Vamdemon sighed and raised his red whip. "Then I shall have to teach you more of its cruelty."

Renamon smiled sadly. "Run my dear," she said with a loving laugh. "Run."

…

She ran.

The sounds whirled in and out of her ears and eyes. Sometimes she saw the teal glimmering between the trees, or heard a humming against the water. But she followed it. She chased it down with all of the energy in her small body.

_This way!_Hikari almost stopped, transfixed by the purple and gold of a high, gentle tone. Come on! She knew that voice, she realized, stepping forward again.

"You... you are that boy." She relaxed. She had been worried he would never come back like he had said he would. "Where did you go?"

_Iris, _he corrected._I would have been back sooner, but many bad things have happened here. I was trying to make them a little better._She nodded. Couldn't be sad for that. For a moment, she glimpsed his features again and saw a deep-set frown.

Hikari felt bad for him. He must work hard. "I... um... I'm glad you're okay."

_You're probably the only one, _the other said with a laugh. _But thank you._

She didn't know what to say to those words, because they were sad and she didn't know why, so Hikari settled for a nod. "Where are you taking me?" As she said these words, Euthalia's gems flickered and she found herself up in the air. "Waah... what are you doing?"she squeaked. "I dunno how to steer!"

Euthalia seemed to ignored her. [Preparations for Anesthesia mode beginning. My master, you need to get used to the controls.]

Hikari frowned. "If you say so..." Euthalia was a very strange device. It put words in people's heads and made them fly. She wondered if it was using her energy to make her fly. Lucemon said it would use her energy for stuff.

It was okay. Flying was cool.

[Don't worry, master. I will teach you.]

Hikari smiled, pacified. "Teach me now, please!"

[As you wish.]

Slowly, strange strings of thoughts poured into her head, as they had the day she had met Euthalia, and when the egg had left her dad's computer, calling her to it.

As this happened, Iris looked on, a small smile on his face. _Your spirit is bright,_he noted. _I envy you for it._

Hikari took a moment to take in these words before tilting her head with a frown. The process was still going on in the back of her mind, so she experimentally tried to swoop under the bright colors. "But yours is bright too. All purple and yellow and sunny. It's really pretty!"

Iris chuckled. _Silly, silly. I remember children like you._Hikari frowned and Euthalia made her turn the right way up again, so she could avoid a tree. _I'm taking you to where the lonely color is. He might lead you the wrong way; he does that. _

"You call it that too?"

_That child has always looked lonely to me._Iris decided not to gently remind her that he was a magical being who talked in her head. It probably didn't matter. She watched his color spin around her and through a tree. She wondered if she could do something like that someda- oh, that wasn't important right now. She had to finish hide-and-seek, and play the next game... and the next...

A chill ran up her spine and she stopped in mid-air. Hikari dropped briefly, but Euthalia pulled her back up by her arms, leaving her to shake her eyes were focusing on teal, low, dark teal.

"That foxie..." the lonely color whispered. "Was that fox lady your friend?" She nodded, feeling ready to puke. "A bad man made her go away. She was brave, but he took her and ate her anyway."

Hikari was silent a moment. Then the bracelets she wore were covered in golden lines and she screamed, a raw wail that was only eclipsed by the roar of white light from her small body.

The light roared and the ground burned.

* * *

(1) Synesthesia is a real thing. Media tends to portray it, from what I've heard, a little oddly. It is a neurological condition in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway. It is not considered a handicap, and most synesthetes are unaware of it being unusual until someone points it out. Specifically, Hikari has chromesthesia, as in she sees certain sounds as colors. For anyone who knows about this, the way I'm portraying it isn't the way it actually occurs, mostly in regard to what sounds she's hearing.

(2) Euthalia's name is a reference to a butterfly. That's the only part I'm telling you about her. :D

(3) Surprised no one has brought this up yet. Time is weird in this fic. Hikari has been mentioned, think it was in the first full chapter actually, to have slept days, and has allowed Renamon to carry her this whole time. This is because she's still stuck on Earth rhythm, even though she can see the passing of time in the Digital World, she's not, as said, accepted into it. So... yeah. I thought I should tell you that.

And... if there's anything else you think I can answer, please drop a PM! Bye~ next chapter will be out on Friday.


	8. Chapter 7: Led By Loneliness

_**A/N:** _So sorry this wasn't out earlier. Urgh... just... I hated this chapter. I shouldn't admit that but I'm telling you. I think changing what I did made it better but still. EURGH. Anyway...

Thank you vampiregirl... and this doesn't lead to 01 entirely... but it does lead to 01.

crestoflight3, you've got it. :D You've got a spoiler. I'm not telling you what, but you have a spoiler. A

Again, this chapter was a bit annoying, because writing toddlers can be ridiculous. Any assistance will be loved as will reviews. Thanks guys!

* * *

_**Chapter 7: Led By Loneliness**_

Vamdemon screamed as the fox before him disintegrated,the screams like peals of laughter.

He howled until he felt his dead vocal cords try to rip from their place, crying in both agony and ecstasy. The Nexus Mark poured into his veins, acknowledging him, acknowledging his triumph as only miles away, a great light began to blind the continent he stood on. He hadn't felt this much triumph in years, centuries even. He should have been enraged, but how could he be, when it was all close to his grasp? That was power, power he could toy with until it was nothing more than something to feed.

Indeed, he would have to hurry. In anyone else's hands, it would be useless to him and easy to throw away.

"Vamdemon-sama!" Pagumon bounced at his foot. "That light is the same signature as the one on Circuit! However... from Alraumon's reports... this time it is definitely hostile! Alraumon is claiming the very life in that area is being erased... scoured from it!"

Vamdemon looked slowly down at the creature, a smile forming on his lips. Though the expression the little scum wore was stricken with possible fear, it still was smirking, and its red eyes remained steadily on him, expecting his answer. "Is that so?" he murmured, watching the incredulous delight rise on his servant's face. "Excellent."

"How so, sir?" His tone held no fear, merely the curiosity of someone willing to push the envelope, maybe even break it open entirely.

Of course, the inquiry meant that he didn't have to answer. "Have Alraumon get in contact with the leader of the 'Selected', Tylinmon. He must have seen this unfold. Have him be informed I wish to strike a deal." Pagumon bounced away with a chuckle and Vamdemon smiled. He would accept the deal; there was no doubt.

The Tempest Program would be destroyed, and with it, Folder, as well. And Vamdemon would have what he wanted.

They were whispering in fear.

The blonde could hear them from her place in the stone window. However, she paid them no mind. They schemed so much about this little dead piece of their world that nothing got done. Not that it really mattered now. Her friends weren't doing anything now, even when they needed to be. Despite that, she let them be, and remained alone. She watched the light outside grow and placed a hand gently on her chest. "I did this," she recognized with a bitter smile, wrapping her fingers around a small item. Before her eyes, the white light grew and swam with a prism of sad color. "That child... she's crying."

"You could not have known, my Lady," said a quiet voice from behind her. "You could not have foreseen any of this. You were frightened."

"Doing things based on fear is what brought our situation about in the first place," she mused, thoughtfully swinging her legs back and forth. Olivia sighed. "Len... our Len's going to be caught up in this explosion, isn't he?"

"...He isn't Len anymore."

"He is," Olivia snapped. "I know... he's not gone. Even with that thing there... he's still..." She shook her head. "Faith doesn't build bridges. We're going to put an end to this, Len... or no Len."

Rising to her feet, she jumped from the window. In her hands, that small, unseeable device began to glow. "Awaken, my holy device."

Even if she could save nobody now, she wanted to try and heal that little girl's pain, take responsibility for bringing her here. At the very least, she had to try.

…

On the outside, Hikari was not crying.

She couldn't cry. All she could think about was: why? Why Renamon-san? All she had done was protect her! All she had done was make her run away.

_My fault? _She had caused this? By being here? Then... if it was her they were after, then would they keep doing this to people until they found her? Then what would they do to her?

Right now... everything hurt. And she couldn't cry it out. She didn't want to accept any more! Everyone wanted her to, but she couldn't do it! It wasn't fair!

As Hikari floated above the earth, higher and higher, she still shed no tears and could not scream, but nonetheless, something was broken.

…

Lucemon jolted, almost dropping Gaomon. "Woah, watch yer arms, mate,"the dog shouted. "Mutts ain't supposed ter fla- what da heel is dat?"

The angel didn't answer, merely shivered. Half of this was from pure delight, and the other was from a sense of deep dread. The scientist in him was so jubilated, he wanted to skip in the air. "The pretty girl has been hurt, so... well..." The dread coiled tighter. "She's trying to hurt right back." He didn't stop to question just what had happened; she was a little human who got easily attached... lost that attachment, and promptly had a temper tantrum. Granted, it was a great deal more complex of an affair than that, however the basis was the same as a Baby level losing its blocks.

"Well," Gaomon began, noticing how the light just wasn't passing harmlessly through anything. "Ain't dat a problem dere? Da leaves are kinda evaporatin'."

"Could be quite a big problem," Lucemon agreed, still sounding unconcerned. "Possibly capable of wiping out the whole continent, and us with it."

They flew on.

"... Yer serious, ain't ya?"

A nod. "Imagine if the sun was an inch from your nose. If you weren't dead long enough to see that, you would be once it was. That is what is happening right in front of us. Holy natured powers have a tendency to overwhelmingly scour everything."

Gaomon looked down slowly at the trees as they dove lower. "I ain't seein' nobody runnin'..."

"You're assuming there is anybody alive, or cares enough about this patch of dirt, _to_run."

The dog squirmed, both agitated and disliking being up in the air. "Den why bring humans t' save what yer blowin' up?"

Lucemon rolled his eyes. "To "blow it up" faster of course. Tylinmon, justice monger the fool is, would be more than willing to sacrifice a few humans over his own men, given the state of world beliefs. Also, the sacrifice of few for the many... it would put humans in the good books and solve the problem at the same time... as far as he is concerned."

"... Don' that contradict what ya told me an' da fart?"

"Perfect levels don't have to be intelligent."

Though Lucemon's voice was very casual, the grip on Gaomon's blue fur tightened at those words.

"_I am tired of seeing death, doggie."_

Gaomon looked down. "How d' we stop the keed?"

Lucemon shrugged. 'Hope she wears herself down faster than other babies. I am not being eradicated by that. Plus I've got you. Besides, if I came back and you didn't, it would be suspicious. Near one of his many wings, a tree seemed to catch fire, and he rolled away, looking disgruntled.

Gaomon shrugged. "Den drop me. Get dis mess done faster."

Lucemon, not being a man-err, mon, of good principles a general amount of time, began to loosen his hold. "You have a plan, Fido?"

Gaomon shrugged. "Beat the bad guy, get da girl an' run off t' da sunset."

"How fairy-tale of you."

A snort. "Maybe. we kin hope, cain't we? Leave me a song." Lucemon released him and he dropped, landing on a tree branch and moving towards the light with only the smallest bit of hesitation in his footsteps. "Poor keed," he murmured. "Don't envy you."

Not that his own position was any better.

…

_No... I don't want to! I don't wanna!_

[Power output stabilization at seventeen percent.] Euthalia's voice, monotonously grave, made Iris cringe. Thankfully, this was unable to touch him, but... it was still horrific.

Hikari had stopped screaming, and was now simply floating at waist level at the tips of some of the distant trees. Her expression was almost in some state of broken-hearted shock. Her feet and fingers were all beginning to flicker black and grey, the color quickly snaking up her arm.

Stop that, he wanted to say to her. Stop panicking before that thing eats you. But the girl was scared and upset and he knew what it was like to be scared and upset at four. However, he could think of no words to reassure her and simply could only watch, reflecting that once again, he was a horrible caretaker. The only words he could manage out were, _Doesn't that hurt?_

Euthalia spoke on, unconcerned. [Current processing of power is fifteen percent above normal, and expulsion of energy is at twenty five percent above average. Due to rapid emission, physical degradation has begun. Continuing to stabilize and subdue power output.]

Behind Iris, he heard the sound of large feet lumbering through what was left of the forest behind them. Out came a Greymon, scales a dull shade of yellow. Tempest looked up at her through the eyes it was possessing. "_What is... she doing?" _Its roar was someone dimmed, but the teal eyes remained almost thoughtful.

Dying, Iris replied, doubting the voice could hear.

"What are... you doing" it repeated, soft roar now growing slightly louder. "You are... going away?" The thing was still and , it made a very strange noise. It was almost like a sob. Then it evolved, building in bursting in a defiant roar. "_NO!"_

Iris cringed again. Two unhappy children.

The dinosaur arms lunged, and instantly started to dissolve. Heedless, the monster continued to move, roaring out sobs that, as far as he knew, the program could only imitate. "You said you were gonna play with me! Don't say that and leave me! Not you too! Don't leave me here all by myself!"

Iris moved to try and intercept the movement, only for Greymon's horn to harmlessly pass through him and disappear. Useless, he wanted to scream. You're just killing more and more, and for what?

Because he's little, his mind suddenly reasoned. Now, stop sounding like that stupid old lady and help. Iris prepared to fly up to the little girl, watching the Greymon's body tumble apart and vanish. However, a soft voice, a human voice, spoke out, gently. "Stop. Please stop doing this." The young woman, blond hair splayed over her covered shoulders, blinked sympathetic green eyes at the little one.

Iris whipped around and his eyes widened. _You._

Olivia smiled bitterly and spread her arms. "Me," she agreed. "I'm taking responsibility, like I said I would." A faint whining came from the earth and she shook her head. "Not now," she scolded the program. "You aren't helping."

_And you can,_Iris hissed. _When this is your fault._

Olivia only shrugged and stepped toward the edge of the light. Her expression shook only minutely but she looked up. "It's okay; you can cry."

_She can't hear you._

"I don't know if I get it, but... it hurts, right? It has to." Her voice continued on, insistent. "I wish I could come up there... and help you. But I can't. I'm sorry. This was... This was entirely my fault. I wasn't strong enough. But... I think I'm strong enough to help others now. So... please, come down here." She spread her arms again. "I know... I can't turn back time or something... but I'll keep it a secret if you cry. I promise I can do that."

The light stopped expanding and began to shrink backwards, lowering Hikari down to the ground to plop there on her sat there, like a marionette cut from its strings, with a blank expression on her little face. Unperturbed, Olivia slowly approached, walking to kneel by her. "It's okay," she said quietly. "You're allowed to cry. No one will be mad."

"It's my fault..." Hikari murmured, though whether she was talking to them or herself was hard to say. Olivia flinched and placed her hands on the toddler's shoulders. "Renamon-san was here... cause of me... she protected me... this is..."

_No, it's not!_Iris hollered this with enough certainty that she looked at him. _The one who did that killed her and that is their fault. You didn't make them choose anything. But if you stay here, she'll be gone for no reason._ Hikari didn't speak. _Don't you want to go home?_

"Y-Yeah..."

_Do you?_

"I do!" Hikari screamed this with all the force in her little body. "I don't wanna be here! Here, everyone gets hurt and cries and my brother and mama and papa aren't here! I wanna be there! All I wanted was to play with Koromon!" Her throat swelled and she tried to suppress it but her eyes were watering anyway. "I've been here and all I've done was hurt everyone! Koromon... Renamon-san... Lucemon... everyone's saying I can be strong and I don't wanna do it! I don't wanna do this..."

Darn it. Now she was crying too, sobbing into this strange girl's chest as a hand stroked her hair and the lonely teal color made odd noises by her ears that made her squeezed shut eyes see silver. The stranger merely hummed in her ear.

"...What do I do?" Olivia looked down at the tear-streaked face. "There's gonna be more... more people are going to cry because of me... what do I do?" Olivia hesitated. She had the answer... but none of the courage to give it. Bravery was not her forte. Iris opened his mouth again, but she shook her head. Couldn't he see that she didn't _need _that? Well... according to legends, he probably could not. Regardless... how did she say...

"Well, lassie, I reckon ya jes' keep goin'. Tha's all ya can do in da end."

….

In retrospect, it was probably a bad idea for him to just jump out like that with his own two DigiCoins into this, but he thought, considering the situation, he couldn't make it worse.

Knowing this, Gaomon stepped out into the trees. "No pouncin' on me," he said, raising his paws as the little girl tensed. On her wrists, two bracelets glowed dimly like faded stars. "I'm here 'cause of a certain cray angel, and cuz a buddy o' mine can't make up his mind."

"Who?" the older human said. Boy, they sure kinda looked alike.

Gaomon sighed. So much for riding off into the sunset. "Lucemon, girly." The smaller one perked a little, rubbing guiltily at her red eyes. "Oh, so ya know o' him an' not the meddling ol' fart Gennai?" _Weird,_he thought. _The way dat cray angel was talkin'... they were da ones who did dis to her... so why wouldn't she know?_

Well... cause dey were manipulative buggers.

"Lucemon... and somebody else... silly really, but... gotta say... ya know how t' make stuff count lassie. Look." He pointed behind them, and they looked. The little girl went pale.

Before there had been trees and grass, lush life that most living creatures took for granted. Now... it was nothing, just odd, pale pink grains that were almost like sands, all of centering in a crater where the girl had sat.

She looked down at the bracelets and whispered, tears no longer flowing and now distracted from her own misery. "Euthalia... did we do that?"

[Yes.] Gaomon jumped.

"Da... Dark...?"

"How...?"

[You became upset... and it used your energy in another way.]

Okay... that didn't even make sense to him. The little girl merely lowered her hands again, thinking and mourning. Breaking, he realized too. She didn't have Gennai's lack of an excuse. Of course, she was gonna break.

"Where are ya, ya stupid ol' fart..." Gaomon mumbled. "What am I s'posed to do now?"

…

When the boat touched land, Gennai didn't move. He merely sat there, thinking, wanting to sleep but not sleeping. He wished he was more intelligent, more flexible. He had no clue what to do with his morality. Being a bystander had always suited him... and taking that first step... how did you...

"Hey, dude, you using your boat?"

He looked up at a smirking face, a green and black face. The plant stared down at him, looking so amused it seemed to hurt. At least, that was how it appeared. There was no way for him to be good at grasping that sort of thing. "I beg your pardon," he finally decided to say, looking disgruntled.

The Digimon sighed. "An' I'm being nice too. Can I use your boat? Crap's about to fly and I don't want to be in the storm." _Screw Vamdemon... and Pagumon... let them burn._

Gennai slowly pulled himself out of the wooden craft. "What do you mean by that?"

Alraumon shrugged. "That guy Vamdemon... he asked me to help him get in touch with Tylinmon or somethin'. Planning to blow up Folder and that cray-cray program. Supposedly, it's in return for some human or energy signature or something like that. I dunno; I just know that the data's blowin' sky-high and I wanna see it from the other side of the water." He pushed off the earth with his vines. "Hope you learn how to swim."

Gennai lunged for him, but was painfully smacked to roll onto the only laughed, paddling away all the quicker. "Those kind are the reason I don't come outside." He sighed and rose to his feet "Damn you Homeostasis."

It didn't answer, but to him that was enough.

A servant of the Digital World had to earn his keep.


End file.
